


House of Snakes

by darkviridescent



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alcohol, Angst, Community: Dramione FanFiction Forum, Dark, Dark Hermione Granger, Death, Death Eaters, Enemies to Lovers, Evil, Explicit Language, Hogwarts Sixth Year, House Party, Magical Accidents, Magical Bond, Marijuana, Mudblood, Muggle London, Mystery, Norwegian Wizarding School, Other Wizarding School, Party, Pureblood Culture (Harry Potter), Pureblood Society (Harry Potter), References to Drugs, Royalty, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Slow Burn Hermione Granger/Draco Malfoy, Slytherin, Suggestive Themes, Top Draco Malfoy, Tournaments, Travel, Wizarding Royalty
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-09
Updated: 2021-03-08
Packaged: 2021-03-14 16:01:37
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 6
Words: 29,510
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29298567
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/darkviridescent/pseuds/darkviridescent
Summary: Voldemort is not the only one with corrupt wizarding ideals that has managed to gain a substantial amount of power. What happens when it's discovered that the looming second wizarding war was only a mere battle? Forget two sides of a coin. Hermione Granger must decide for herself which side of the dice she will follow and even the brightest witch of her age can be fooled. Begins sixth year.
Relationships: Hermione Granger/Draco Malfoy
Comments: 5
Kudos: 21





	1. Numb

**Author's Note:**

>   
> The story begins sixth year at Hogwarts, which is the Half-blood Prince. I will be doing a warning before each chapter. I have the plot planned out but no other minor details or how it's going to get to what I have planned. So keep your eyes out for that if certain things makes you uncomfortable!  
> 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: minor drug and alcohol use. cussing. minor suggestive themes.

**EVENING BEFORE BEGINNING OF SIXTH YEAR**

  
Hermione sighed as she stepped out of the shower, her exhaustion finally catching up with her. It was moments like these where she truly appreciated having her own prefect dormitory. She could walk out of her insanely long shower and head straight to bed without anyone asking any questions or shooting her concerned looks. After casting a quick drying charm on herself, she put on the fresh pair of knickers and bra that she had placed by the sink. She looked at them pleasingly in the mirror. Her face my have looked like death itself, exhaustion clearly eating away at her, but at least she was finally allowing herself to be a girl. It made her feel powerful, if that made sense. Just another secret to add to her every growing list, which she was internally very happy about. She liked having a private life, separate from those that had put her on some pedestal that she did not asked to be put on. She loved her old friends that helped her survive Hogwarts growing up, but the unsaid expectations they had for her was wearing her thin. And to make matters worse, last year was a _complete_ shit show. That was when Hermione had really noticed a change within herself. She tried to fight it at first, lying or chastising herself for having a thought that was not typical 'Hermione', but after Voldemort reappeared, something inside of her broke. Maybe it was hope. She wasn't sure. As soon as she entered her bedroom that summer, she collapsed onto her bed and had several realisations.

  
She had become rather numb to lots of things, and she no longer cared about that anymore. Obviously, it wasn't the most healthy coping mechanism, but she had no plans to try and change it. Instead she found herself welcoming it, feeding it. She felt it was the beginning of a long spiral towards something incredibly wrong, but would deal with that in the future. There were too many other pressing matters to think and worry about, which involved a very dark wizard who was very much like a cancer, constantly a part of Hermione's life since even her very first year at Hogwarts, becoming more terminal with time.

  
She did _not_ care for Harry, Ron, or anyone else important in her life, for that matter, worrying about her. Not for their sake, but her own. She knew that they would take it upon themselves to feel guilty for the way Hermione had changed, especially Harry. She truly loved them, but she wanted to be left alone, to deal with her demons in silence and not worry about anyone else worrying over her. If she wanted her own demons, she had the right to have them to herself. She knew without a shadow of a doubt, that they would make it their life's mission to try and 'fix' her. She honestly hated the thought of that. She most certainly did not want anyone watching over her like a sick dog, especially her friends.

  
"Definitely could be a lingerie model," she said to herself sarcastically before opening the bathroom door rather abruptly.

  
"Well isn't this... _cozy_. It-" Two figures stood in her private common room and stopped speaking, being surprised by the noise Hermione had made from opening the door.

She could practically hear the smirk in the voice of one of the figures, but she didn't have to guess for much longer as she saw it once he turned around.

  
"Fuck." The word left her mouth as she quickly processed the situation in front of her. She slammed the door shut just as quickly.

  
"You've got to be kidding me," she closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration before letting out a deep breath.

Hermione rushed to put on the dirty clothes that she had tossed on the floor prior to her shower, worried that the two people might disappear after being discovered. She forcefully opened the door once again, only this time, her heart seemed to be beating with the same forcefulness.

  
"How did you get in here? What are you two playing at?" Hermione demanded as she held her wand between the two tall figures that occupied her sitting room.

She wasn't sure who to fix her wand at as she pointed it between the two of them. She decided it was probably best to focus it on her childhood bully.

  
"So this is _your_ dormitory, then?" Draco's brows furrowed. "I've been made a prefect-"

  
She cut him off. " _You've_ been made a prefect.. _again_? Hah," she let out a breathy laugh.

Blaise chuckled. Draco's cold, grey eyes stared irritably at his friend before freezing hell itself when he glared back at Hermione.

  
"Lower your wand, would you?" His voice had certainly become deeper over the summer.

If Hermione wasn't consumed by her hatred of Draco, she may have even found it threatening. He may have chosen words that one would normally assume to be a request, but Hermione realised years ago that out of his mouth, everything sounded and most definitely was a demand. Draco glanced at the tip of her wand with annoyance before directing that same irritated gaze straight into Hermione's eyes once again. He looked like he might as well have taken a sip of vomit. How lovely. It appeared that this much communication with her, a mudblood, was taxing for him.

  
She laughed again, yet there was no trace of a smile or amusement on her face. "You really are becoming quite the comedian, Malfoy. Who would've guessed." Like she would lower her wand when he was staring at her like that.

His relaxed and casual stance only irritated her further, causing her to tighten her grip on her wand.

  
"And now I've got a lick of jokes I could say about those poor excuses for fucking breasts." He purposely lowered his gaze to Hermione's chest before making eye contact again. Seeing the slight shock on her face made his signature smirk return to his face.

  
"Alright, let's hear them then." She challenged Draco with a raised eyebrow as she nodded her chin towards him. Blaise amusedly looked at Granger before slipping his hands in his trouser's pockets and tilting his head as he watched his friend with curiosity.

  
Draco lazily folded his arms and leaned against the wall. "Unlike yourself only moments ago, Granger, this isn't a free show. And you don't really have anything to offer me, do you, _mudblood_?" He roamed his eyes over her body once more, to iterate his meaning.

  
Hermione slow-clapped her free hand to the one holding the wand before steadying it once more. "Very clever. You got me there, _pureblood_." she emphasised her last word to sound as venomous as his had. "It appears you're a one hit wonder then, Malfoy. I bet Pansy could confirm that though," she smiled.

Blaise seemed to have sucked in air before releasing it in the form of heavy laughter. Draco glared at Hermione. If looks could kill, she was sure his eyes would have poisoned her right then and there.

  
"Good," she thought.

She hadn't realised before how eager she actually was to receive and throw back more insults. Years of hypothetical arguments she had with him in her mind had apparently prepared and excited her. She never thought of herself to seek out drama, but here she was. Another secret to add to the list.

  
He closed his eyes and pushed air out through his nose before looking back up at her. She was rather disappointed when she could practically see the anger roll off of him. He looked around the room with disinterest.

  
"Why aren't you in the head girl dormitory?" he asked.

  
Hermione spoke slowly, as if Draco were slow. "Because I'm not head girl. This is _sixth year_ , Malfoy."

  
"Yes, because clearly I wouldn't know what year we're in, you stupid bint." He rolled his eyes.

  
"Then why even think I was head girl, _you_ stupid bint?"

  
"Clever, Granger. Brightest witch, indeed." he smirked. "Thought McGonagall would make an exception for you and all. Certainly did for Potter, placing a first year on the quidditch team. How much more difficult could it be to give the seventh year Head Girl spot to a sixth year?" Draco held up one of his hands and turned his attention to his nails, forming a circle with his thumb and middle finger as he inspected them. "You three have somehow managed to stick her head up your arses all at the same time. If that's not magic, I don't know what is. You'll have to teach me that spell sometime." He flicked something invisible off of his fingers before returning his gaze to Hermione and smirking.

  
"Well, I'm sure you don't need any help learning how to shove heads up your arse, Malfoy. I mean, you've managed to shove your own head up there since at least first year." Hermione smiled. "Oh and let's not forget Crabbe and Goyle. That's three heads up your own arse at the same time. I guess you'd consider that magic as well then?"

  
"The cheek on you. Someone's changed over the summer." She was disappointed by the amused expression on his face. She had really hoped that he would take the bait.

  
"As _exciting_ as this is, can we get a move on, Draco? Unless she plans on showing us her knickers again, I'd rather not spend the rest of my evening in Granger's dormitory." Blaise smirked at Hermione before turning to Draco. Hermione scowled at them both and felt her cheeks becoming slightly warm.

  
"Yea, alright. Don't want to be breathing in this filthy mudblood air for any longer." He pushed himself off the wall. Draco looked at Hermione once more and smirked when he saw her glare before walking out after Blaise.  
"Maybe we'll take the prefect dorm closest to this one." He paused and turned back around, his hands confidently in his trousers' pockets. "What do you think, Granger? Will you be a good neighbour and give me a cup of sugar when I come knocking?"

  
Blaise turned around as well, rolling his eyes at his friend.

  
"You really never shut up, do you? Leave before I actually shove your head up your own arse, you prick."

  
"Honestly, Draco. Get a move on," Blaise added as he began walking off. Draco smirked as he slowly took a few steps walking backwards, keeping eye contact with Hermione before finally turning around and following Blaise. Hermione forced the door shut with her wand and made a mental note to change the password tomorrow morning.

  
Now that she was alone she had time to process what had just happened. Did Draco Malfoy and Blaise Zabini _actually_ see her in just a bra and knickers? She honestly didn't know whether to be relieved or mortified that she had decided to wear a more attractive set. At least she wouldn't have to worry about them thinking twice about her body, whether that was because she wasn't a pureblood or due to the fact that her breasts were truly poor excuses for breasts. Malfoy had been spot on about that. There were hundreds of thousands of better breasts than her own. From what she heard from the girls she lived with her previous years at Hogwarts, boys preferred bigger breasts, and hers were decent at best, if that was the case. She shook her head. There was no doubt in her mind, they would speak of the incident to their housemates. Why wouldn't they? Well, no matter. Human brains were shite at visualising, something she was never grateful for before that moment.

  
She sighed and went to her bedroom to put on a clean set of pajamas, picking a short-sleeved light pink silk button up with large red hearts and long matching bottoms that cinched higher up at the ankles. A knock on her door a few minutes later caught her by surprise. She had become all too familiar with that knock from over the summer.

................

  
"Hey, Herm." There was Theo Nott leaning against her doorframe with his arms crossed and a cheeky smile.

  
"Theo." She honestly didn't expect their friendship would continue once they were back at Hogwarts. He casually wrapped his arm around her waist and placed a light kiss on her cheek as he entered her dormitory.

  
"Does every Slytherin plan on visiting these living quarters tonight? Don't tell me Pansy's making her way here as we speak?" Hermione shut the door behind her.

  
Theo took a quick walk around and opened the doors, taking a quick peek in each room as he spoke. "Nice dormitory. Other Slytherins are coming to your bedroom, Herms?" He winked at her. "Cheeky," he added before collapsing onto the sofa, resting his long arms across the back. "I just hope you've used the scouring charm.." he looked along the sofa and raised an eyebrow at Hermione.

  
"I can assure you, if there was any of _that_.." she cleared her throat, feeling slightly awkward, "many scouring charms would be cast, Theo." She raised an eyebrow back at him.

  
"Scared I'll bite? Come sit, Herm," he patted the empty spot next to him and smiled.

  
"Back to calling me Herm, then?" She asked as she plopped down next to him, albeit slightly hesitant. Still, she returned the smile.

  
"We've yet to establish any sort of relationship at Hogwarts. Can't have myself falling for you here in Hogwarts when I'd done so well over the summer," he lightly tapped her nose before shoving his hand in his pocket. "The whole star crossed enemies to lovers thing, you know? That's quite alluring, don't you think?" Theo threw a small bag on the coffee table in front of them. Hermione looked at it, knowing all too well of it's contents.

  
"Shall we crack on then?" he looked at Hermione and noticed her furrowed brow. "Unless, that was just a one and done summer thing for you?" He asked curiously.

There was no mocking or judgement in his voice, which was another big reason that Hermione had spent so much time with Theo Nott over the summer. They had never really spoken a word to each other before then.

  
"I guess I expected we would go back to how we always were once we got back to Hogwarts." She shrugged.

  
"Well, that's a bloody fucking depressing thought, Granger." He chuckled at her. "You clearly need _this_ more than I do." He tilted his head towards the small bag.

  
"I mean we never really spoke about it. And you're a Slytherin, I'm a Gryffindor. What would Malfoy and everyone else say?"

  
"Granger," he folded one of his long legs onto the couch and turned to face Hermione, any trace of smile gone from his face. "Despite your entire time at Hogwarts revolving solely around you, you're little golden trio and slytherin trio and all that, there is actually a _vast_ ," he dragged his hand in the air above his head in a half circle" and I mean _vast_ majority of _other_ students who attend this school. Some might even say they're..." he looked around the room and leaned in closer before whispering "dare I say it, normal." Theo smirked before pulling back and once again leaning back on the couch.

  
Hermione rolled her eyes but couldn't contain the smile that now adorned her lips.

  
"So?" he nodded towards the bag again. "Were you planning on forgoing weed along with our friendship?"

  
"The friendship would've been missed, but the weed..at this point, it's necessary for my own sanity."

  
"Well lucky for you, Herm, I'm right here where you left me, with weed as well," he winked.

  
"Let me grab my wand and the bonbons," she shook her head as she chuckled and got up to go to her bedroom.

  
"Cute pajamas," he spoke loudly enough for Hermione to hear.

  
"I know," she retorted back before throwing the bonbons down next to the small bag of weed.

  
"My favorite." Theo rubbed his hands together. "Up until this summer, you've been wasting your magical abilities. Now I truly understand the brightest witch of our age thing," he smirked.

  
"Yea, yea. What were you thinking this time?" she held her wand at the ready.

  
"Just something simple. Let's infuse it into the bonbons and then have the bag refill itself for 24 hours?" he shrugged.

  
"I already taught you how to do that on your own?"

  
"What? Thought I'm just using you for your talents? I do consider you a lad, Herm." He smiled.

  
"A lad? You've definitely been spending too much time with muggles, Theo." she chuckled and looked at him.

It was surreal that they were having a laugh together at Hogwarts. Sometimes when she would think back to the summer, it felt so strange to think she had spent it with none other than Theo Nott. She was eternally grateful for him though in more ways than one.

**SUMMER BEFORE SIXTH YEAR**

  
The first week of Hermione being home had turned her into an empty shell. She didn't dare let her parents know what was happening in the Wizarding World. Out of fear that they would not let her return and to protect them. The charade of being the old Hermione was so draining. She spent a lot of time in her room, blaming it on her studies, which got her parents out of her hair for at least a bit. She needed some sort of release. Something to take her mind off of things. Once the weekend arrived, she thought maybe walking around the city centre and getting some fresh air would help. That's when she saw the pieces of papers stapled around about a party at University of Westminster, a university not too far from Hampstead, where she lived. It was like a light went off in her head. She needed something normal, muggle, and juvenile. Three concepts that were sorely missing from her life. It was a perfect distraction. She made a mental note of the time and address. The party was tomorrow evening. She found herself feeling even a little excited as she shopped around for an outfit to wear. Hermione had neglected her feminine side for far too long, and decided it was time to try something new.

................

  
Being a witch in a muggle world had many benefits. But when said witch was underage and unable to practice magic outside of Hogwarts, it made life that much more irritating. There was a slight thrill to sneaking out of her home like a proper muggle teenager though, she had to admit. After her parents went to bed, she snuck out of her window, being grateful it was only on the second floor rather than the third. Perhaps it was overkill as her parents were pretty heavy sleepers. If she were to simply walk out the front door, she imagined with mindfulness, one could easily manage it. But tonight, she didn't want to take any chances. She smiled to herself after successfully driving off towards the university with a newfound purpose.

................

The party was being held in a pair of flats nearby the university. She parked her car along the pavement along with the many other cars that crowded the last three streets. The music could already be heard from way down where she parked. Hermione stopped for a second.

  
"Am I really doing this?" she thought.

Her mind began drifting back to just a few weeks ago and before she was swept up by more memories, she shook her head and got out of the car. The closer she got to the party, a strong smell flooded her nostrils. She may have been in the wizarding world for most of her life, but she was quite familiar with that smell. Muggles really enjoyed weed. Hermione made the decision then and there that she would as well that evening.

  
Immediately upon entering the party, she felt overdressed. Hermione had bought a sphagetti strap rouched black velvet dress that hugged her body and ended around her mid thighs. Her shoes were black to match and had a strap that wrapped around the ankle. She pulled out her old hair straightener as well and took the time to make sure she had smooth, straight long hair. She had really looked at herself in the mirror after putting on makeup and was proud of how pretty she thought she looked. It had been a while since she took the time to get herself ready. Now that she was at the party though, she regret the effort she put in. Girls were wearing jeans and tshirts and the guys as well.

  
"Honestly, what else would they be wearing, Hermione..." she thought to herself. Obviously they would be wearing casual clothes, it was a party. In a flat.

  
She held her head up nonetheless and decided she would need a drink sooner rather than later. In the kitchen was a collection of drinks. She decided to go for a classic beer and held the top of it on the counter to pop the it off before taking a long sip. She coughed afterwards, wrinkling her nose as she wiped her mouth.

  
"Not so much into beer?" A deep voice spoke.

  
Hermione turned around to see who it was. He looked oddly familiar. She couldn't quite place her finger on it.

"It's my first." She wasn't in such a talkative mood. Perhaps that meant she needed another sip, which she took, this time drinking more than last time.

  
He chuckled. "You seem to be drinking with a purpose, so I guess telling you to take it slow wouldn't be smart?"

  
She nodded her head, "Correct."

  
"I think you're the prettiest girl I've ever seen in real life." He stepped closer to Hermione, trapping her between him and the counter.

She could feel the body heat radiating off of him. Her heart fluttered in her chest. She had yet to have her first kiss and wasn't sure how one could tell when that was about to happen, but she was positive that close proximity such as this was necessary. He stared her in the eyes and smirked before taking a step back and opening a can, taking a sip. She released a breath she didn't realise she had been holding.

  
"So, is it a breakup then?" he asked.

  
"Excuse me?"

  
"The reason you seem so intent to get drunk?"

  
"I wish it was a breakup. That would be a lot simpler." She chugged the rest of the bottle, grimacing still at the taste.

  
"Care to elaborate?" He raised an eyebrow to her.

  
"Its big enough to make me want to get shitfaced. You wouldn't understand a single thing though." She felt the effects of the alcohol just begin to hit her. A small smile spread on her face. "You're a muggle."

  
"I'm a what?" He smiled back at her.

  
Hermione grabbed a similar can to his. Once she tasted it, her eyebrows rose in surprise. She took a long drink.

  
"Better?" He smirked.

  
"Much better."

  
"Let's dance." he grabbed her hand before she could answer him, but she was more than willing.

This is exactly what she wanted. They made their way to the sitting room where the music was the loudest. The only source of lights were purple lightbulbs that someone had replaced all the lamps with.

  
"I've never danced like this!" she shouted over the music. He smirked.

  
"Here!" he grabbed her hands and placed them around his neck.

Afterwards he placed his hands on both sides of her hips and they started to move to the music. The alcohol was slowly starting to affect her more. She found herself actually able to laugh. They continued to dance and once the alcohol fully affected her, she was completely focused on dancing and her partner. She looked at his face, wondering why he looked so familiar and then it hit her.

  
"Oh my god!" she said and pulled back slightly.

  
"What?" he yelled back.

  
"I know who you remind me of!"

  
"Who, love?" He smirked again and pulled her closer.

  
"That pureblood prick, Draco Malfoy!" she yelled into his ear.

  
"Seeing as he's a prick, good thing I'm not him then." he spoke into her ear and pulled her close enough to where their chests were touching.

The bass from the music was loud and slow. After a few moments, Hermione remembered how she made the decision to get high that evening.

  
"I'm going to find some weed, I think!"

  
The guy chuckled and grabbed her hand, pulling her towards some stairs. "It's in the room by here. There's some rich bloke here who always brings a fuck ton of weed and just hands it out. Fucking mental, but none of us complain."

  
He opened the door to the room and it was filled with smoke, which made Hermione cough. There were two sofas separated by a coffee table. Four guys were in the room, playing a game of cards around the table. The small pile of money suggested that they were gambling. Hermione's eyes widened as she actually did recognise one of the guys who was focused on the card game.

  
"Mate, I've got a shite hand!" one of the other guys shouted out.

  
"Nott?" Hermione asked incredulously.

The last person she would have expected here at a muggle party was Theo Nott, a pureblood Slytherin. She quickly glanced at the guy she had been dancing with, worried that it was actually Malfoy, but let out a sigh of relief when it wasn't.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, I think I'll end the chapter there! It's getting longer and longer, which isn't necessarily bad but I think that's a good stopping point haha. Next chapter will continue with Herm ;) and Theo's first encounter and then resume back to Hogwarts in her prefect dorm before they get into a little mischief.  
> I have a whole plot planned out, but it gets quite intense. I was hoping for this story to be a little more serious, as I was inspired by pieces like Manacled and the Auction, but we'll see what happens as I'm not as skilled of a writer. As I was writing this chapter, it was definitely not coming across as dark or serious as I was initially intending, but I think I'm ok with that for now. This is sort of a beta and something to improve my writing. This is my second Dramione fanfiction I've ever written, but technically first since I only wrote one very short chapter for my last one and never continued it haha.  
> After writing the chapter, I decided that I am hoping for the story to start off more juvenile now, as they're all still on the more innocent side, being quite young and at Hogwarts. But as things get more serious for them and time passes, their personalities will begin to grow and become more serious in a sense, at least that's the plan. So I think I'll attempt to have it slowly progress into a more serious tone as things get more intense with Voldemort lurking around the corner and all...but as I'm just writing this one chapter at a time, I honestly don't know how exactly this story will end up, but thanks for checking out the story so far!  
> Reviews are appreciated! I'd love to know what you guys' thoughts are!


	2. Pick Your Poison

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry! I hoped to post the chapter two days earlier. Hope you guys enjoy! This chapter is a probably the longest chapter I've ever written hahaha. It's longer due to the flashback of Hermione and Theo that ended up being more lengthy than I thought, so if you aren't up for reading the entire flashback, I've added a summary of it at the bottom. It does switch back to the original timeline at Hogwarts, so if you want to just read that, keep your eye out for the bold title: EVENING BEFORE BEGINNING OF SIXTH YEAR  
> 
> 
> RECAP: "Nott?" Hermione asked incredulously. The last person she would have expected here at a muggle party was Theo Nott, a pureblood Slytherin. She quickly glanced at the guy she had been dancing with, worried that it was actually Malfoy, but let out a sigh of relief when it wasn't. 
> 
> WARNING: drug usage, alcohol, foul language, attempt of rape, drugging 

**SUMMER BEFORE SIXTH YEAR - CONTINUED**

The guy that eerily looked like Malfoy smiled at her with a confused expression. "What was that?"

"Who's the bird, Lewis?" Hermione looked back at Theo.

Of course he wouldn't recognise her. Even if she hadn't straightened her hair, she was sure he wouldn't have recognised her. Honestly, if she hadn't befriended Harry or Ron, most of the students at Hogwarts most likely wouldn't have spared her so much as a second glance. The thought didn't upset her by any means. She was quite antisocial when in a school setting, something she would admit to anyone who asked. Hermione didn't think that was something to feel ashamed about.

"Uh, sorry, love. I don't think I caught your name." He draped an arm around her shoulder and guided her to the sofa.

As the guy, who Hermione now knew was named Lewis, went to sit down, he shoved Theo's leg as a signal for him to slide over and make space for them. Theo moved closer to the arm of the sofa, his attention remaining focused on the cards in his hands. Both her and Lewis sat down. She was enjoying the party, but was far from how drunk she was hoping to _actually_ be. Hermione honestly didn't care too much about sharing her name with her current party date that she planned to never see again after tonight. It was the fact that she was still able to think coherently that made her realise she definitely needed more alcohol in her system. She hoped he'd be too drunk to remember that he asked for her name. The expectant look on his face as he watched her, told her otherwise. She sighed and grabbed a beer can off of the table, which she assumed to be Theo's, and took a long sip before finally answering him.

"Hermione." She thought about going by her surname, but figured it best to cut any connection to her parents. They were the only Granger's in Hampstead and were well known amongst their upper class circle of friends.

As soon as the word left her lips, she saw Theo's attention snap to her face with confusion. His brows knitted together as he stared at her. It reminded her of herself when she had her first divination class with Professor Trelawney, the entire time thinking how ridiculous and impossible the whole lesson seemed.

 _'He must have not heard me call his name earlier,'_ she thought.

"Having fun playing delinquent with the muggles, then?" She raised an eyebrow at him and smiled when she saw the realisation dawn on his face as she confirmed his suspicions.

His head jerked back ever so slightly from the shock and his eyes widened. She was slightly surprised herself when his lips formed a warm smile. That was not the reaction she had been expecting, but then again, she didn't know what she expected. They never interacted before that moment.

"Fuck. It's really you, Granger." He tossed his cards on the table, revealing them to the others. The other three groaned with frustration.

"Mate. You've dried me out," said the one that sat opposite to Theo. He wore a bright orange beanie and groaned as he pulled it down over his face before pulling it right back to it's original position on his head.

"Said every bird you've tried to trick into bed," retorted Theo before looking back at Hermione. She smiled at Theo's comment as she stared at the one in the beanie. He made eye contact with her in that moment and looked her body up and down before returning a smile.

"This one's got a sense of humour. Ollie." He held his hand out for her to shake. She brought her hand to his and he clasped hers with both of his hands and winked before letting her have her hand back. "You're fucking, fit."

Ollie turned to Lewis. "Might have to steal her from you, mate."

Before anyone could comment, Theo spoke again, ignoring Ollie's remarks. " _Literally_ the last person I would _ever_ expect to run into here would be you." Theo addressed Hermione once again, the expression in his eyes incredulous and slightly devious.

"I could say the same. It makes more sense me being here, rather than you, though." She smiled as she shrugged her shoulders and took another long sip of the beer.

Theo watched her with intrigue as the can touched her lips and smirked.

"Wait so you two know each other? This is the rich bloke I was telling you about," Lewis added. The surprised expression that washed over Hermione's face further amused Theo. He chuckled.

"Uh, yeah. We were classmates." _'Emphasis on the were'_ , Hermione thought. She didn't want them to realise she was underage and deduced that they assumed Theo was older as well. "Are you here alone, or should I expect to see more of your," she paused, "friends?"

"What, you mean like Malfoy?" Theo smirked. "Muggle Malfoy not good enough for you, Granger?" He nodded his head towards Lewis.

"About the third time I'm hearing both of those words. Is he the complicated reason you said you wanted to get shit-faced, then?" Lewis asked.

Hermione thought about his question. In a sense he was. Or he played a small part at least. It was no secret what his pureblood family's beliefs were. They were something he made sure to let her and everyone else at Hogwarts know. Malfoy never directly said anything about his family's stance, but the way he threw around words like mudblood and blood traitor, plus the way he especially looked down on her and Ron, made it quite clear. And it was those type of ideals that was the reason Voldemort was able to be as powerful as he was and why he was becoming more and more of a threat each day.

Hermione chugged the rest of the can and unconsciously shifted her body away from Lewis. Theo scrutinised her body language and once again the expression on his face changed in an instant to a stare that was a mixture of confusion, shock, and like a little child who had just been given a lollipop.

"Wait. Is there truth to what he's saying? Is there something I don't know, Granger?" His eyes were filled with anticipation and that deviousness returned in full force.

She wouldn't have guessed Theo to enjoy gossip, but they were both discovering things about one another for the first time.

She found it rather amusing that Theo could seriously believe that Malfoy and her had some sort of relationship that was anything besides extreme dislike. Whether he thought she had some sadistic one sided crush on Malfoy or that they were having some type of "lover's spat" from a secret relationship, she had no idea. But the notion made her laugh in her mind. She had to force her nose not to crinkle at the idea of her and Malfoy sharing anything romantic between one another. Sober Hermione would have dismissed the ridiculous concept immediately, but drunk Hermione was feeling more playful, so she shrugged her shoulders.

With just one simple movement of her body, Theo was now completely engrossed in their conversation. He wore a full blown smile as he let his hand lazily clasp Lewis' shoulder before turning his head towards him.

"Alright, mate. Time to get up. The big boys are speaking now," he winked at Hermione and she couldn't hold back her quiet laughter.

Lewis looked hesitantly between the two before lingering on Hermione's face. When she made no sign that she would suggest he should stay, he huffed in frustration as he got up. Hermione Granger absolutely _hated_ giggling and was absolutely powerless against the small giggle that left her lips. Yep, she was definitely more drunk now.

"I'll be around, Hermione. If you decide to come find me later." Lewis added, but didn't sound convinced that she would. He went over to say something to Ollie before him and the other one who they had been playing cards with, all got up and left.

The music was amplified when the door to the room opened and became once again muffled once Ollie shut it, making sure to wiggle his eyebrows at Hermione before doing so.

"Want some before the long elaborate story that I very much intend for you to tell?" Theo pulled out of his pocket a small bag filled with weed and a small boxed package.

When he looked up at Hermione, her eyes were glued to the contents, watching them curiously. Theo smiled before taking a thin piece of paper out of the small package and laying it on the table. He cleared his throat before opening the bag and gently tapping it over the small, rectangular piece of paper, letting a small amount of the contents fall out into a thin line. Theo rolled the piece of paper tightly around the weed before taking the entire thing towards his mouth and slowly dragging his tongue across the edge. He then twisted one end with his fingers to seal it off. Hermione was impressed that his large hands were able to handle everything so delicately. She was sure he did well in potions class and wondered what it would've been like had they ever been partners. He seemed decent enough, friendly even, but perhaps that was the weed and alcohol.

He held up the blunt and inspected it as he twisted it between his thumb and index finger. "Not my best work, but it'll do the trick. I'm going to make an educated guess and say you've never smoked weed before?" He raised an eyebrow at her.

"Very good deduction skills, Theo. You must be an excellent potions class partner." Hermione randomly added and smiled at him before leaning against the back of the sofa to try and calm the dizziness in her mind.

He placed the cigarette in his mouth, holding it there with just his lips as he shoved both of his hands into his black trousers' pockets, searching and finding seconds later, a lighter.

"Impressed you then, did I?" The rolled blunt moved up and down as he spoke.

After he roughly brushed his thumb against the lighter to ignite it, he brought the small flame to the tip of the cigarette and let the paper burn, slightly catching fire. He inhaled, causing the ends of the cigarette to glow orange and seemed to hold his breath in his chest before grabbing it with his long fingers, pulling it from his mouth, and releasing a deep exhale that blew smoke into the room.

Hermione felt the smoke wrap around her lungs as she took a small breath. She knew the smoke wasn't going to be pleasant for her and her slight cough made sure that Theo was aware as well now, but she was sure that his knowledge of her lack of experience told him that anyways.

Theo chuckled before casually passing the blunt to Hermione and leaning his head back on the sofa. "Just try and do what I did. It will be more effective if you really let the smoke sit in your lungs for a few seconds before slowly releasing it."

She cleared her throat with determination as she carefully plucked the rolled piece of paper out of Theo's fingers, rolling it with her own to inspect and get a feel for something she wouldn't have dared to even look at only a year ago.

"It's not going to bite you, Granger." Theo was watching her curiously. Like he wasn't sure if she would really go through with it.

That look was enough for her to take the final plunge. She learned long ago that she hated when people assumed things about her, and it made her sometimes do very stupid things to prove whatever assumptions as false. Like chase after one of the most notorious wizards with two boys that happened to be just as stupid as she was, apparently.

She quickly, albeit hesitantly, placed the cigarette to her lips and attempted to mimic Theo's actions. The air she inhaled felt like sandpaper against her throat, causing her eyes to begin to water. Fighting her body's natural desire to cough, she held the air inside for a few seconds until it became too much and ultimately ended with her coughing as the smoke left her lungs immediately. Hermione held up the cigarette for Theo to take as she covered her mouth with her other arm to conceal her coughs.

She began to laugh simultaneously with her coughs and Theo joined in. "That's dreadful." She said once her lungs had settled.

"Pick your poison," he added. She found it an interesting thing to say, but was too drunk to think much about it.

Theo took another hit before passing it back. Hermione attempted once again to smoke from the cigarette and still managed to end in a slight coughing fit.

"It takes times to adjust. You also may not even feel anything this time, actually. Could take a few tries before you feel high."

Hermione nodded her head as she took in his words, slightly disappointed.

"So, you and Malfoy? How the hell did that happen? It's _so_ fucking ridiculous that I think I believe it." Theo's head still rested on the back of the sofa, but his gaze turned towards her. He watched her with eager eyes.

"Yea, I know," Hermione fought the large grin that was begging to be released, trying her best to keep a serious expression on her face. "Really... _fucking_ ridiculous." The word felt so foreign on her tongue, but she quite liked it.

She was far from a saint, _'although many would argue against that statement,'_ she thought begrudgingly. Hermione found herself cussing often in her mind, but never really aloud.

"I mean the more I'm thinking about it though, the more it's staring me straight in the bloody face. It makes _absolute_ fucking sense." Theo shook his head incredulously, lost in his own thoughts as he sat up and took another hit of the cigarette before handing it back to Hermione.

"Penny for your thoughts, then?" She added before attempting for the third time to take a smooth inhale of the cigarette.

It still felt like someone had poured acid down her throat as she took in a breath of the smoke, but she did manage to keep from coughing this time. She held it out for Theo to take once again, but he ignored it, fully engrossed in how her and Malfoy made so much sense. So she kept it in her hand and took another hit. Theo turned, his whole chest facing Hermione now. His eyes were twice their usual side.

"Yea sure, he makes fun of Potter and takes the mick out of him, but he _really_ gets nasty when it comes to you and Weasley. I always thought it had to do with the whole blood status thing, but see," he wagged his finger and cocked his head to the side as if making a fairly obvious point, "notice how he doesn't go around giving the same treatment to the other Weasley's? Or other," he made quotes with his fingers, "'blood traitors'" as he likes to call them. Just you two. And you know, one _could_ argue," he waved his hand in the air as if to dismiss the frivolous notion he was about to add, "the other Weasley's are older, whereas Ron is his age, but no." Theo shook his head rather enthusiastically.

Perhaps he was so engrossed in the conversation because the weed was affecting him. He spoke to Hermione as if this was his life's passion. It made the whole ordeal that much more entertaining and the smile was getting harder and harder to contain, slowly making an appearance around the corners of her mouth.

"Mhmm?" Hermione added, goading him to continue.

"He has no issue giving a mouthful to that annoying prefect Weasley. And he barely looks twice at the little Weasley girl. He's completely enamoured with just you two. And I don't see him giving even a fraction of attention to any other mudblood around the school. He always knew that that Weasley's had a hard on for you and he couldn't stand it. But there's nothing he can do about it, at least not openly," Theo wiggled his eyebrows at Hermione before the contemplative look reappeared on his face, "because if daddy dearest ever found out, he'd probably be shipped off to Durmstrang in a heartbeat. Thus," he waved his hand dramatically in the air, like the queen of England herself, "never seeing his forbidden true love, Hermione Granger, ever again."

She was blatantly aware of his use of the word _mudblood_ , but was quick to forget it when he continued speaking. By the end, Hermione could barely hold back her laughter, managing to speak the words, "And scene," before a large smile finally forced it's way onto her face and loud laughter erupted from her lips.

The pleased look on Theo's face slowly morphed into one of a more tentative nature. "Either I've completely butchered that or you were messing with me from the beginning."

He cautiously glared at Hermione before she met his eyes and laughed even more. It was enough to cause Theo to chuckle before turning into full on laughter himself. Neither of them expected that they would be in one another's company tonight at a muggle party, of all places, and they most certainly did not think that it would lead to both of them laughing together on a sofa, sharing a blunt.

"I blame the alcohol. It was such a ridiculous notion, I had to see where it would go." Hermione was finally able to breathe again.

"Well it certainly lead to a good laugh." Theo added once his own laughter subsided.

" _If_ Malfoy and I were to have been a thing, your reasoning sounds 100% logical."

"And you're _positive_ on the 'if', then?"

Hermione nodded her head. "Extremely. There has been _only_ animosity between Malfoy and I."

"If he wasn't such a prick though, between just us, Granger, would you fuck him?" Theo raised his eyebrows at her.

Hermione coughed, "You really don't hold back, Theo Nott."

"Refreshing though, isn't it? I, for one find it rather charming." He smiled proudly and plucked the cigarette from Hermione's fingers before grabbing the lighter from the table to reignite the cigarette and take another deep inhale.

"Actually, it is." Hermione felt strangely comforted to be in Theo's presence. He said exactly what was in the forefront of his mind. She didn't have to wonder what he was thinking. He was just there, living in the moment without a care in the world. He had taken away her stress more than the alcohol ever did. He didn't have any high expectations of her either, which _was_ refreshing. She hadn't found herself focused on her troubles that were always lingering and she would inevitably have to return to.

He passed her the blunt. "You're alright, Granger."

They shared a smile before she took another hit and then stood up as she passed it back to him once again. "I need to use the loo."

"Should be right outside, down the hall. Is this goodbye, or should I expect your return?"

"I could use more of that refreshing 'charm'. You're good at calming people, Theo. I'll come back with more drinks." She left the room and was able to find the toilet with no problem.

Luckily, there was only one person in front of her waiting and they were only in there for a few moments before Hermione was able to relieve herself. After washing her hands, she looked up at herself in the mirror. A layer of sweat covered her skin, which gave it almost a luminesce look under the bright light. She had felt worse for wear than she actually was and was pleasantly surprised that her appearance had remained intact, especially her hair.

Hermione opened the door and as she stepped out, felt two hands grab around her waist and pull her close. A finger reached inside her mouth and she felt something dissolve on her tongue. Ollie looked down at her with a devilish grin as he removed his finger.

"It's Hermione, isn't it? Fancy running into you here."

She pushed him back, but was annoyed by how little he moved. His arms stayed firm on her waist and Hermione could physically feel the energy begin to leave her body.

"What's happen...ing?" Even speaking was becoming taxing for her.

"You alright there, love? You want to lay down? You're looking tired." He brushed her hair from her face, tucking it behind her ears, looking at her with concern.

Hermione's mind began to betray her as well as she found herself slowly nodding her head. When Ollie placed one of her arms over his shoulder, she found herself leaning into him for support, having a hard time standing on her own. Her mind became cloudy and all she could register was the small lifting movements of her feet before the music became muffled and she felt herself land on something soft. It was difficult for Hermione to hold onto her thoughts. She knew she wanted to keep her eyes open, but didn't know why. Her eyelids were becoming heavier by the second and she found herself unable to fight it as they began to close shut.

A heavy pressure on her had shocked her body just enough for her eyes to reopen. Ollie was laying on top of her, speaking to her. She wasn't able to make out his words. She wanted to ask him what he was doing, but her mouth felt like it had dissolved into a puddle and all that she managed to get out was one lousy syllable.

"Whh..."

"Shh. I'll take care of you love. Don't worry." Ollie began sloppily kissing her neck before attacking her lips with his own.

Another shock to Hermione's body. She didn't like what she was feeling. She wanted it to stop. Wanted him to stop. Her attempts to push him off of her were futile. She wasn't even sure if she managed to move her arms at all.

"St...st..ppp" She used any strength she had. Only her mouth seemed to be working and just barely.

She felt a hand on her breast, grabbing it harshly, causing yet another shock. It was enough for her to just register the situation she was in. A tear rolled down her cheek at the realisation of how completely helpless she was and what was going to happen. A moment later, the music became louder and the pressure atop of her body alleviated. A silent thanks was said in her mind before she couldn't fight the sleep that finally overtook her.

**...**

A slight tapping sound could be heard.

 _'Did Harry owl her?'_ she thought and tried to lull herself out of her sleep.

She became suddenly aware that her body was moving ever so slightly in sync to the taps. Her brows furrowed and she felt her heartbeat begin to race as she discovered her eyes wouldn't open. They felt so heavy. The tapping became louder and her body moved more as well. One of her eyelids were pulled open and she could just make out a figure.

"Granger. You in there? It'd be nice if you woke up now, before someone walks by and stares." Her eyelid dropped once more.

More tapping. She found her brain start to wake up and was finally able to pull her eyelids open halfway, blinking to try and clear her vision.

"Theo?" She croaked, her throat feeling very dry. She could make out his face now. He was tapping her cheeks.

"There she is." He was still tapping her cheek with his large palm that covered the entire left side of her face.

She looked at him with tired and weary eyes. "Is there a reason you're still slapping me, despite me being awake now?" she grumbled.

"It's fun. And you still look like you're about to pass out again any second." He stood up and held his hand out for her to take.

She was slow and weak still, but her body responded to her. Hermione grabbed his hand and let him help pull her back to her feet.

"What happened? And where are we?" She looked around. It was dark still and they were standing by a stone wall. She leaned against it for support.

"I believe we are at _Twat_ ling Lane," he chuckled before shifting uncomfortably and looking down the street. "And that sod, Ollie...he drugged you. It had been a bit so I went to go find you and couldn't. I checked upstairs and found him on top of you. He wasn't able to do much besides kiss you and grab your breast, I think. But I couldn't say for sure. I'm sorry, Granger." He finally looked her in the eyes, an irritated look in his own and a frown on his lips.

The faint street lights left them in a yellow glow. Hermione felt her heart rate increase at what Theo had told her. She was more awake now and could vaguely remember what happened.

"That's all he was able to do." Hermione hesitated. She felt an immense amount of gratitude towards the Slytherin she had not even known only a few hours ago. He was not what she was expecting at all. "Thank you, Theo," she said before hugging him.

"Oh, uh. Yea, of course, Granger." He shifted uncomfortably before awkwardly patting her back.

"Did you say Twatling Lane?" She asked before pulling away from him.

Theo chuckled, "Muggles and their street names. I'll never understand, but will forever be grateful for them."

"Agreed." Hermione laughed. They began walking down the empty street.

"Hungry?" He inquired.

"Starving."

"Alright, there's a chippy just around the corner."

**...**

"Your family's estate is thirty minutes from the outskirts of muggle Hampstead?" Hermione shook her head incredulously as she dipped her chip in ketchup.

"Small world, isn't it?" Theo added. "Who would've guessed that we were neighbours, just separated by magic?" He copied Hermione's actions before taking a bite out of a rather large chip. "And to think, if only you rebelled a little earlier, we would have found each other sooner."

"So when did this all start for you then?" Hermione inquired.

"Fourth year. When my father started to see me as a 'young man' and all that shite." Theo rolled his eyes.

"I take it you two don't get along, then?"

"He's probably the biggest arsehole you'll ever lay eyes on, Granger. I'm talking," he formed a large circle with his hands, the size of a watermelon, "absolutely fucking _massive_." He laughed before eating a piece of fish.

Hermione laughed with him and silence followed.

"But yea. He makes Draco's dad look like Godrick Gryffindor. So I escape whenever I can, and once I'm out, I look for other forms of escape. Anything to distract my mind from all the horrible things he's done..does."

"Pick your poison?" Hermione asked.

Theo smirked and nodded. "Pick your poison," he replied. "So what is the innocent bookworm Hermione Granger trying to escape from?" Theo leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table, curiosity in his eyes.

"I don't know. A sense of duty and obligation, I suppose? Everyone has these expectations of me and how I'm supposed to be. But I'm not that person anymore. Too many things have happened, with you-know-who."

"Ah yes, the root of both of our problems, it seems." Theo leaned back again and tared down at his food, pushing it around his plate with one of the chips.

"It's like he's eaten away at my soul. I feel numb most of the time now. I just want to forget about the looming evil for even a second."

"Pick your poison." Theo held up the chip.

"Pick your poison." Hermione picked up a chip from her own plate and they tapped them together in solidarity before both plopping their chips simultaneously into their mouths.

"I think I'm going to call you Herm." Theo ate another piece of fish as he stared at Hermione.

"Herm? That's...a _flattering_ nickname." She eyed him curiously.

"Precisely. You'll _basically,"_ Theo motioned his hand towards Hermione, "be like a grandpa."

"Right...because calling me Herm transforms me into a grandpa, in your mind.." So far Hermione had spent perhaps a total of four hours with Theodore Nott and she discovered that they both thought very differently from one another.

"See, knew you'd get it, Herm." He smirked.

"Actually I don't, but something tells me even after you explain it, I probably still won't." Hermione smirked.

Theo shrugged again. "Only to ensure I don't develop some sort of crush on you," he winked. "Can't be falling in love with a mudblood and all that."

That was the second time he used that word. He noticed the disdain on Hermione's face.

It took Theo a second to register what was wrong. "Sorry... That was probably one of the first words I learned to say when I was a baby, hearing it so often everyday and multiple times a day, by my father. I don't mean anything bad by it, I swear."

Theo rubbed the back of his neck, feeling slightly uncomfortable. Hermione waved her hand to dismiss his apology.

"I learned the word my first or second year, but I think growing up in the muggle world, it just doesn't have the same negative effect on me like it does for Ron." She hoped it would stay that way, but had a sense of dread, her mind reeling back to Voldemort for a split second. She pushed it from her mind. "I got that look on my face probably because the word honestly just reminds me of Malfoy. I swear the only words in his vocabulary are 'mudblood' and 'Potter'" Hermione scrunched her nose at the thought of him.

"That's even worse. I, Theodore Nott, will do my absolute best to stop using that word then." Theo said with a smile. "I don't know about you, Herm, but the thought of him definitely makes me throw up a little."

Hermione laughed and nodded her head as she popped another chip into her mouth.

"You reckon he practices his insults in the bath?"

"Definitely not. He's one of those cocky arses where it just comes natural to be a complete sod to everyone, and successfully as well." Hermione rolled her eyes at the thought. " _I'm_ the one who practices in my head, in the shower, long after the argument's well over. And never to be used in real practice." She sighed resentfully as she shifted herself in her seat.

"At least you punched him that one year." He pointed a piece of fried fish at her before eating it. "More effective than petty insults, in my opinion. When that little story spread, I slept like a baby that night."

Hermione smiled. "It did feel quite good. Aren't you two friends though?"

Theo shrugged. "We've always tolerated one another. Growing up in the same circle of people and all that. Used to hate the prick, but I've started to enjoy his company more as of last year. Still think he's a prick, and would gladly tell it to his face, but it's all in good fun now."

Hermione nodded mindlessly, not having much to say on the matter. It was weird to hear Malfoy being described as someone tolerable.

**...**

They both finished up their food and stepped out. The sun was just beginning to light the sky.

"I should be heading back, before my parents wake up."

"They'd be upset? Theo asked.

"Yours wouldn't?"

"Only if they found out I was out with muggles...or high." He shrugged.

"Hmm." Hermione found it interesting, where his parents' morals began and ended. A cold breeze caused her to shiver. Theo hesitated for a moment. Despite it being their first time really being in each other's company, he felt in a way that they were kindred spirits, that he could trust her. Perhaps that was the Gryffindor effect, though.

"Allow me." Theo pulled out a wand and began to cast a spell.

Before he could finish, Hermione quickly grabbed his wrist. "What are you doing?"

"It's just a simple warming charm, _Herm_." he said and continued.

She pulled on his wrist again. "You'll be expelled, Theo." She stared at him warningly.

He chuckled and peeled her hand from his wrist. "Perks of having a rich, massive arsehole for a father. Undetectable wand. Shh." He placed his pointer finger on his lips and winked.

Hermione blinked, not sure how to feel about the information.

"Shall I proceed?" He raised an eyebrow at her. In a way, this was his final test, to see if him and Granger could really get along.

Hermione guardedly stared at the wand and back at Theo. An undetectable wand? Surely that was illegal? What difference did it really make though, if an adult wizard was nearby or not when they performed magic. And something as simple as a warming charm.

Theo pulled her from her thoughts. "I just use it for simple stuff. Like this. You can't honestly tell me you haven't mentally cursed yourself for all the times you wished you could just use a simple spell over the summer when your away from an adult, but couldn't because of that bloody rule? Even Durmstrang students are allowed to use magic unsupervised outside of school. We've only got a few more months till the Trace is taken off of us, anyways."

He confirmed what she was already thinking, but she still had her doubts. "Well that's a different government than ours..." Still, his points were valid, so she nodded her head towards the wand. "How does it work?"

"Well, Wolfie here," Theo gave the wand a little shake in his hand, "is tricked to believe the one using it is over the age of seventeen. But it's a 50/50 chance that that part actually works, so for added security, it misdirects the location of where a spell was cast. If it activates the Trace Charm, for all the ministry would know, someone in Wales, or anywhere else in the UK for that matter, could cast that warming charm. Gift from my father so I wouldn't have to bother him more than absolutely necessary." He smirked.

Hermione found it quite ingenious and impressive.

"Alright, go ahead then. Nice name for your contraband wand, by the way."

Theo chuckled and cast the charm. "I mean, you _did_ just smoke weed with me, Granger. I'm pretty sure that's considered illegal in just about every government, _muggle and wizard_ , around the world. It'll be interesting to figure out where exactly your moral compass lies," he said with a smile as he lifted his black jumper and slipped the wand between the waistband of his trousers and his torso.

Hermione smiled at Theo reluctantly with a furrowed brow and shrugged. "My moral compass is all over the place, especially as of late. I love rules, but I've probably broken over half of Hogwarts' by third year. Plus the older I get, the more I'm discovering I love them in only theory.."

She thought about not saying anything, but found herself trusting Theo, especially after he saved her life while she was completely unconscious. He also opened up to her about some personal details of his own life, so they both had essentially put their selves on the line. Worst case scenario, who would believe him if he spread rumours around Hogwarts. Both considered it was probably stupid to reveal so much to someone who was essentially a stranger and in their rival's house at Hogwarts, but didn't think much about it. For both Theo and Hermione, tonight they were just two young wizards trying to distract themselves in the muggle world.

Theo raised an eyebrow at her and they began walking back. "And you're getting onto me about casting a warming charm." His hands were in his pockets and he nudged into her with his shoulder, causing Hermione to stumble slightly.

She laughed. "Well, I'm still adjusting to my new self."

"I'm honoured to bear witness. And pleased about your metamorphosis. So much potential being unlocked." He smirked.

**...**

Theo walked Hermione back to her car and watched her curiously as she pulled a key out of the top of her dress and shoved it into the car door.

"Might want to save that move for Draco, during potions class, Herm." Theo smirked.

"What?" Hermione turned to face him, confused. "I thought you saw me as a grandpa?" She said accusingly. "And for the last time, there is _nothing_ between Drac-Malfoy and I." She was rather flustered, irritated by what he had implied. She fully regretted going along with the joke earlier, egging him on. He continued slipping comments about her and Malfoy into their conversation the entire evening.

Theo held up his hands in defence. "Doesn't mean I'm blind, Herm. And _all_ I'm saying is, if _one_ did want to seduce Draco Malfoy," Theo pointedly looked Hermione up and down as he nudged his head towards her, " _one_ would certainly qualify in the looks department. All _one_ would need to do, is a little," he wiggled his eyebrows, " _seducing_."

"Well _one_ would rather jump off a cliff than seduce Draco Malfoy." She turned back around, forcefully pulling her car door open before slipping into the driver's seat and shutting it behind her. Immediately afterwards, she cranked the handle down to open the window. "But thank you for the compliment." Hermione coughed, feeling awkward. She wasn't used to compliments from purebloods, if she was being honest. She looked back up at him and shook her head with a smile.

Theo was staring at the car with extreme curiosity.

"How are you getting home, Theo?" Hermione inquired as she stuck the key into the ignition to turn on the engine.

"Portkey." He answered casually as he leaned down on the door, folding his arms and inspecting the interior.

"Portkey?"

Theo pulled his focus from the car and looked back at Hermione. "You look confounded, Herm."

"Portkeys are _quite_ difficult to make?"

"You know, Raf," he shrugged.

"Raf..?" Hermione thought for a moment. "Rich arsehole father." They said simultaneously. Theo nodded his head slowly and smiled. "You're catching on quick."

"So what, he just has some laying around? Or you had some tutor?"

"Both. But I find it much more satisfying to steal from the old crone." He smirked.

Hermione wondered how Theo's life was growing up. What other spells was he forced to learn from his father? Had he been subject to dark magic as well?

"So, Herm. You really going to make a boy beg?" He unfolded his arms and pushed himself off of the car door, but kept his hands firmly in place, using the door for support as he continued to lean against it.

"Excuse me?"

"I've always wanted to drive a muggle vehicle."

Hermione nudged her head to the left, towards the passenger seat. "Get in."

Theo was unable to convince Hermione to let him drive the vehicle, so instead he enjoyed his first time in a car as the passenger.

"I really do need to be getting back now, Theo." She said after about twenty minutes.

"What have you been doing this whole time?" Theo raised an eyebrow at her.

"I thought you said you wanted to go on a joyride?" Hermione looked at him with her mouth slightly agape.

He chuckled. "I've never been in a car before, Herm. Any time spent in one would be considered a joyride."

She laughed. "You've yet to experience a _proper_ joyride then."

"Let's plan for one then. Next week."

And so they did. Hermione wasn't expecting to see Theo again after tonight and wasn't planning on pushing it, but was glad that he did. He made her feel sane again and it was easy to forget about everything else when they were together, but also have someone there who understood.

Theo told Hermione to drive to her home, so he could pick up the signature location of it and make portkeys for her as well, in case of an emergency or laziness. He emphasised on the latter. She still found herself weary at the thought of him making portkeys and asked him to explain it better to her. He clarified that while he was able to make portkeys, he was far from a professional. His portkeys had greater limitations, so they only worked when one was perhaps about 300km, at the most, away from their destination. Hermione was extremely impressed at his skill and was surprised when he said it wasn't that much of a feat. She argued him to the bone until he resigned and conceded that perhaps it was a little impressive.

Theo told Hermione about a party happening tomorrow night and invited her to come along. He made her promise that they would keep an eye on one another and not leave the other's company unless it was absolutely safe to do so. Hermione was internally grateful that he made it a point to bring up again, making her much more willing to continue on her journey of recklessness. When she agreed, Theo said he would meet her here with portkeys.

And that was how their they both spent their summers. Eventually they began to spend time together during the week and in the daytime as well. Hermione gave him his first car lesson and he even met Hermione's parents, spending time at her house occasionally, but not the other way around, for obvious reasons. He offered to sneak her in, give her a tour when his parents were gone, etc. but she felt too paranoid to do so.

**EVENING BEFORE BEGINNING OF SIXTH YEAR**

Theo plopped three bon bons into his mouth and moaned. "Perfect." He held the bag up for Hermione to grab some.

Hermione silently laughed at Theo as she went to eat one herself.

"Tomorrow evening there's going to be a party here. And before you say no, it's very hush-hush. I expect you to be there."

"Here? At Hogwarts?" She eyed him wearily. "I don't know. People know me here. I'm not ready for rumours of the new and improved Hermione Granger to spread."

"And like I said, there's actually people in this school that don't give two flying fucks about Harry and Draco's hard on for each other. People who know how to keep a secret and live under the radar, Herm."

Hermione laughed. " _That_ is true forbidden love."

Theo smirked.

"It just seems risky. And I am a prefect." she added.

"Even more reason to keep things quiet. It'll be nice to have a witch on the inside," Theo wiggled his eyebrows at her. "Come on, Granger. Think of all the progress we made in the summer. We could continue our shenanigans. They don't have to end. Life isn't the same without them. I know you a good amount now. You need all of it, to keep sane, like me."

"Merlin, shut up, Theo," she rolled her eyes and smiled. Perhaps it would be ok if she got a feel for things first. "Give me a month? I think I want to get a feel for things first. So I'll brew a polyjuice potion."

Theo laughed at the idea and looked at Hermione as if she had a third eye on her forehead when he didn't hear her laughing as well. "You're serious, aren't you?"

"Perhaps..." she hesitantly added.

"Kinky, Herm." Theo looked at her with another one of his devious grins. Hermione simply watched him with an amused look, used to his comments.

Theo sighed. "Lucky for you, I'm about to reveal another one of my secrets, Herm. I, being king of mischief, always make sure to have a supply of polyjuice potion on hand."

"I'm surprised that I'm surprised," Hermione added and folded her leg so that she could turn to face Theo on her sofa.

Theo smirked. "Never know when you'll need it. And look," he waved his hand in the air, "a moment has presented itself. Patience and I don't get along. A month, Herm? A month?" He raised an eyebrow at her.

"Ok, I'll go then if you give me some."

"It's yours," he shrugged and a devilish grin appeared on his face, "a few things, though."

"Of course," she mumbled under her breath, but still loud enough to cause him to chuckle. "Get on with it then, Theo."

"Can't have anyone know about my little polyjuice potion stash. And I'm not going to miss out on the party while you enjoy it in my body. So, you have ten minutes in the party, which is more than enough for you to get a proper feel and kill those nerves of yours, trust me."

"Who said I was going to polyjuice as you?"

"And who do you plan to go as, Harry or Ron?" Theo inquired with a raised eyebrow and laughed at the notion.

Hermione felt the bon bon begin to affect her and suddenly the conversation was becoming quite hilarious to Hermione. "Yeah, alright. What are the other conditions?" Hermione asked with a large grin on her face.

"First day of sixth year is tomorrow. I dare you to switch positions with me for the entire day until ten minutes into the party." Theo quickly flashed his eyebrows up at her before they both busted into laughter.

A few moments later, another knock rasped on her door. Theo and Hermione froze in silence before the person behind her door knocked again, this time louder. They both hurriedly stood up and Theo grabbed the bag of weed as Hermione shoved him into her bedroom and shut the door. She coughed and unconsciously smoothed her hair before she quickly opened the door.

"Hey Hermione. Everything alright?" Padma Patil smiled at Hermione.

"Yes, of course. Hello, Padma," she smiled back. "It's so good to see you again. It's been ages!" Hermione pulled her into a warm embrace as if they were the best of friends.

"Uh yea, it has. Prefect meeting in ten minutes in McGonagall's transfiguration classroom. See you then," she smiled curiously at Hermione's sudden warmth towards her. Hermione had always been friendly, but more reserved. It was strange for Padma to see her so open.

"See you then, Padma." She shut the door in her face and started laughing. Theo came out of her bedroom, laughing and trying to shush Hermione.

"She'll hear you, Herm." He lazily smushed a finger to her lip as they continued laughing. She shoved his finger from her mouth.

"You're completely stoned, Theo."

"As are you."

"Not as much as you, though."

They both laughed. Theo grabbed a few bon bons and shoved them in his pocket before making his way to the door.

"I should get back before anyone else stops by." He turned around once more to look at Hermione. "So, do you accept my dare?"

"Yeah alright. What the hell." Hermione laughed and made sure to look down the hall before kicking Theo out and shooing him away. They both shushed each other, laughing quietly before Theo made his way down the hall and disappeared down some stairs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another long and slow chapter. I really intended for Theo and Hermione's first interaction to be shorter but here we are. If you enjoy reading, hopefully my writing was bearable enough hah. If you stuck with me the whole chapter, I appreciate it!
> 
> SUMMARY: Hermione and the guy she had danced with from last chapter sit down on the sofa with Theo. Malfoy's name is mentioned again, and Theo then questions if Hermione and Malfoy have some sort of secret relationship. He goes on about his theories and how it seems so ridiculous, that it actually makes a lot of sense. She is drunk and messes with Theo and lets him believe that her and Malfoy do have a relationship until she isn't able to contain her laughter anymore. They share a blunt and Hermione gets up at one point to use the loo. When she exits the loo, someone grabs her and shoves a drug into her mouth. She is barely able to keep her eyes open. The guy attempts to rape her, but Theo rescues her. He sobers her up as they eat in a chippy and they chat a little more, sharing a bit about each other's personal lives. Hermione discovers that Theo has access to an undetectable wand. They make a deal to make this a weekly thing over the summer and keep an eye on one another. Theo spends time at Hermione's eventually, learning to drive and even meeting her parents.


	3. Puzzle Pieces

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: drug use, language, sexual themes
> 
> RECAP: "Uh yea, it has. Prefect meeting in ten minutes in McGonagall's transfiguration classroom. See you then," she smiled curiously at Hermione's sudden warmth towards her. Hermione had always been friendly, but more reserved. It was strange for Padma to see her so open.
> 
> "See you then, Padma." She shut the door in her face and started laughing. Theo came out of her bedroom, laughing and trying to shush Hermione.
> 
> ...
> 
> "So, do you accept my dare?"
> 
> "Yeah alright. What the hell." Hermione laughed and made sure to look down the hall before kicking Theo out and shooing him away. They both shushed each other, laughing quietly before Theo made his way down the hall and disappeared down some stairs.
> 
> ...

Hermione shut the door and sat one the sofa. She realised that her and Theo hadn't made any plans of where and how they would meet to take the polyjuice potions. She also needed to ask him how he stored his polyjuice potion to be used at a moments notice. That could be quite useful in the future. Her mind wandered to all kinds of places while simultaneously thinking of nothing. She closed her eyes and felt as if she was floating. Eventually Hermione grabbed another bonbon without thought and plopped it into her mouth, beginning to chew on it. Not even a second later, she spit it out and cursed under her breath.

She certainly did _not_ need another bon bon right now. Not with the prefect meeting...

Hermione bolted up from the sofa and looked at the clock on the wall, which she then realised was futile, as she had no idea when Padma had actually come to her room to notify her of the prefect meeting in the first place. For all she knew, it could have very easily been thirty minutes since Padma knocked on her door. She was very bad at keeping track of time when she was high. Forcefully placing the half chewed bon bon onto the coffee table, she rushed to McGonagall's classroom, pajamas and socks and all.

Hermione cleared her throat and fluffed her hair up, a small detail to add to the white lie excuse she would be giving for her tardiness, before opening the door just enough to slither in, which was her attempt at being inconspicuous. And it failed miserably. The door loudly creaked to reveal her presence, stealing everyone's attention as she struggled in an attempt to hold the heavy door open just enough to fit her body without crushing herself.

"Sorry, sorry." She managed to get out in between her heavy breathing.

The distance from her dormitory to McGonagall's classroom was not small and she was positive she had made it there in record time. Once she was inside, she let go of the door, letting it shut behind her. She began to laugh, but coughed to cover it up when she noticed the strange stares she was receiving.

"Sorry," she added once more with an amused smile that she was attempting, and failing, to conceal.

 _'It's a blessing and a curse to be high right now,'_ she found herself thinking.

If she weren't, she wouldn't have been late to the meeting to begin with, but she would most definitely have been internally mortified by everyone watching her like she had grown a large beak on her face. To make matters worse, they all seemed to still be wearing their uniforms. Hermione certainly stood out amongst the dark colors with her silk pink pajamas that were adorned with large bright red hearts.

 _'Don't wear pajamas to late night prefect meetings. Duly noted,'_ Hermione thought, smiling to herself before finding a place near the wall and leaning on it for support as she faced Professor McGonagall as the other students did. She blinked multiple times and attempted as best as she could to look 'normal'.

One of the other prefects resumed speaking. She heard quiet sniggering to her left and became aware of the white hair that was so easily seen even in the far corner of her eye. She turned her head to look and saw Pansy mumbling under her breath as she nodded her head towards Hermione. Malfoy had a smirk on his face and turned his own head. His grey eyes, cold as ever, slowly grazed over her body before stopping on her face. The smirk fell off of his face when they made eye contact and his blank stare changed into an accusatory glare, almost as if to say _'how dare you look in my direction'_. It didn't seem to matter that he had been doing the exact same thing.

 _'What a life it must be, to waste so many passing thoughts and have so much disdain for someone they barely associate with and who they consider to be less than dirt. And without any logical reasoning, only strange social prejudices they learned from their fathers and forefathers, who probably only did so to create a social hierarchy that allowed them to be the 'elite'.'_ Hermione thought. Ah. Now she was getting into her 'deep thinking' phase of being high, where suddenly everything sounded philosophical in her mind and needed to be analysed.

She had never done anything to Malfoy except breathe in his same air or poke back when him and his friends took it upon themselves to try and play a game of Provoke the Mudblood. He had been quite a thorn in her side during her time at Hogwarts, _especially_ last year with Umbridge. Hermione's body recoiled at just the thought of that vapid woman. She wondered how he would manage to top last year, bringing her irritation of him and his friends to new heights. They really needed to find some hobbies. How boring their lives must be, if _that_ was their main source of entertainment. They weren't even that good at it.

Hermione finally realised why Malfoy's stare had turned into an active glare. She had been smiling while looking into his eyes. It must've confused him, as she had never done that before. He probably wondered what the punchline was. And she was _still_ smiling. Merlin, Theo's special blend of wizard marijuana was too good. How long had she been standing there and smiling at him?

 _'It couldn't have been for more than a few seconds, surely,'_ she thought as she nodded.

' _Fuck,'_ still staring and, _still_ smiling, like an idiot. Her gaze flittered to Pansy for a moment before back to Malfoy. To Hermione's relief, Pansy's interest in her was short lived, as she was currently examining her nails. Malfoy had kept her gaze the entire time, his glare still rather apparent, but now confusion had taken over the rest of his face. His lips opened and he mouthed something to her, which she couldn't distinguish.

She honestly thought it looked like he mouthed the words 'I love you', which caused her to smirk, as she thought back to Theo and his ridiculous theory about their 'relationship'. It was probably more along the lines of something that contained the words 'filthy' and 'mudblood'. A classic Malfoy statement. He was rather consistent with his bullying. Didn't really leave things to the imagination. Hermione nonchalantly smoothed one of her eyebrows down with her middle finger and wiped the corners of her mouth with it as well, with a large smile on her face. She could see his irritation as the confusion left his face. He continued to glare harshly at her while his tongue rolled against the inside of his cheek before finally conceding and turning away. Hermione smiled at her minor victory before turning her own attention towards the front of the classroom again.

The boy had just finished speaking about whatever it was. Hermione hadn't heard a single word.

"Thank you, Mr. Macmillan." McGonagall nodded curtly at him before directing her eyes on Hermione. "Ms. Granger. How fortunate for us that you've finally graced us with your presence." Professor McGonagall spoke sharply, as she always did.

If Hermione hadn't known her so well, she would have not been able to pick up on the concern in her eyes. Hermione smiled sheepishly. The last thing she needed was the head of her house to keep an eye on her out of concern and discover her new past time activities.

"Sorry, professor. I've been pretty exhausted as of late. I must've dozed off for a few minutes, but I immediately left my dormitory when I came to. It won't happen again." The fluffed up hair and pajamas would only help her case, she hoped.

"You fell asleep? I just spoke to you only fifteen minutes ago?" Padma commented.

 _'Ah, so I'm only five minutes late.'_ Hermione noted.

"Yes, it was unexpected. I only shut my eyes for a second, but here we are. Crazy, how the human body functions, isn't it?" She smiled amusedly at Padma.

Padma's brows were furrowed, but she returned the small smile. "I suppose so, Granger.."

"Well you two can finish your discussion on the functions of the human body another time, hm? Take a seat at the empty desk near Mr. Malfoy and Ms. Parkinson, please." McGonagall added.

Hermione was thankful there would be no more deliberations on her tardiness. She gladly took the seat, not caring much on who it was next to, simply happy for the attention to center back on her professor. She casually leaned forward on the table and folded her arms as she rested on it for support.

She heard Pansy whisper, "That would certainly be a short lived conversation. It would end before ever getting to the more _interesting_ functions. I bet they've only been kissed. _If_ even that." and did her best to ignore it.

So it had finally gotten to this. Now making remarks of her sex life.

' _They're certainly not wrong, though.'_ she thought.

Malfoy sneered and also whispered, "I'd hardly call anything Weaslebee does with his lips a kiss."

Pansy quietly laughed. " _Oh_ , I can see it now. All wet and drowning her in his slobber, like a hound. Is _that_ how it is for you, Granger? Shall I lend _Draco_ to you, show you what _proper_ snogging is?"

Pansy stuck a finger to her opened mouth and pretended to gag at even the notion. Hermione laughed through her nose and smiled, focused only on Pansy critiquing Ron's snogging capabilities. The weed had painted quite a vivid picture in her head, one that included Ron with a hound's head. Under normal circumstances, the image wouldn't have been that entertaining to her, but that was why she enjoyed getting high. Everything became funny. Both Draco and Pansy took her smile as more sarcastic.

Malfoy turned to look her up and down again with a smirk, "No. This one's too much of a prude. Isn't that right, Granger?"

Hermione finally gave in and turned her head towards the two slytherins.

She smirked at Draco before focusing on Pansy and whispering, "spending your free time worrying whether or not I've had a proper snog, then, Parkinson? Maybe you should offer yourself next time. I just might've been tempted."

Hermione smiled at Draco's reaction. ' _How's that for a prude, prick?'_

His eyebrows shot up for a split second in surprise. He actually managed to deviate from his normal expression of constant displeasure that he wore whenever in her presence. She wasn't sure what to make of the expression. Malfoy almost seemed worried? Maybe he was seriously worried that Pansy might just be exploratory enough to mix saliva with a 'mudblood'. Pansy raised a single eyebrow, albeit much more slowly, and before either of them could speak, McGonagall beat them to the chase.

"I expect you all to be thorough on your rounds at night and do not hesitate to get a teacher if there is any threat or even the _feeling_ of a threat. These are dark times. And because of that, we will not deviate from the scheduled rounds. No switching up partners or shifts this year. We don't need things to become miscommunicated along the grape vine and lead to chances of potential neglect. Now onto bigger news, and I expect _everyone's_ full attention now." She glanced at Hermione, Draco, and Pansy and cleared her throat.

"As prefects, you all are privy to information before the other students. I'm not sure how many of you have ever heard of Fordaeo Magisk Skole or the Dikastir family?"

Draco and Pansy shared a skeptical look before watching Professor McGonagall again. Hermione piped up in her seat with intrigue. She had heard of Fordaeo Magisk Skole as did a few others apparently. Hermione noticed it was only the purebloods that seemed to, but the half-bloods and the only other muggle born didn't. McGonagall nodded her head and continued speaking.

"Yes, well, it is a very prestigious wizarding school in Norway. And the Dikastir's are an old wizarding family with ties to Norway and the biggest benefactor of Fordaeo Magisk Skole. This year they have decided they wish to give some of their top students the opportunity to study abroad for a better understanding of the wizarding world and have chosen Hogwarts to be an acceptable option."

Draco scoffed quietly, enough for only Hermione and Pansy to hear.

"They want them to experience the slums, it seems. Life among the peasants." Pansy added with a smirk.

"Dumbledore and the head of the Dikastir family have come to an agreement, that it would be beneficial for some of the top Hogwarts students to be given the same opportunity at Fordaeo Magisk Skole. The Dikastir family, the other benefactors, and Dumbledore have spent the summer working together and devising a tournament of sorts that will take place this year, that will challenge students from both schools. In some ways it will be similar to the Triwizard Tournament," McGonagall took in hesitant breath, as she watched the students with a sorrowful look in her eyes, "but with much more supervision. To avoid similar _tragedies_. Everything has been planned with utmost secrecy and some of the main benefactors, as well as..a heavy amount of security guards _,_ of sorts, from Fordaeo are here now,"

Draco and Pansy once again shared a knowing look.

"to help oversee the tournament. I now open up to questions and will answer to the best of my ability."

No one was surprised that Hermione Granger was the first to raise her hand.

"Ms. Granger."

"How will it be decided who will enter the tournament?"

"I believe there will be a series of preliminary tests, and it has been decided that it is a requirement for all fifth years and higher to participate. Those who pass, will partake in the tournament. I must also add that there is not one singular champion, unlike the Triwizard Tournament. Multiple students will have the opportunity to be successful."

Pansy immediately spoke once McGonagall's mouth had closed. "Given the overkill appearance of _multiple_ benefactors plus the high security, is it safe to assume that some of the students will be apart of the royal families, then? I mean, Fordaeo _is_ the only school that most Nordic wizarding royalty deem acceptable to send their children."

And it was no surprise to anyone that Pansy had thought of such a thing. McGonagall nodded. "Yes, it is safe to assume so."

"Do you know which students?" Pansy added.

"No. I am not privy to that information. Not until they arrive and _their_ security measures for _their_ protection have been put in place. I do know that there will be a total of ten students arriving though, Ms. Parkinson."

Pansy slumped in her seat, bored again. Her attention returned to her nails.

"So only ten students will be chosen from Hogwarts to attend Fordaeo? And for how long will they be here and we be at Fordaeo?"

Draco lazily rolled his head to address Hermione. "Already assuming you're going to be chosen as one of the select few who get to go to Fordaeo, then, Granger?"

"That's n-"

"Mm," He nodded his head and hummed, looking amused. "Of course not. But you do realise, most tournaments require more than just information you can gather from a book."

Hermione sarcastically gasped as she smiled. "Maybe you'll have a shot for once, Malfoy!"

McGonagall opened her mouth, "Alright, let's settle down."

He slipped his long legs out from under the wooden desk and turned with his whole body to face Hermione with a sneer. "What exactly do you think you're implying?"

Hermione, still feeling the affects of the weed, laughed and smiled again, only riling him up further.

"Sorry, Malfoy," She reached out her hand and patted his shoulder. He recoiled, the middle of his back bumping into the side of Pansy's shoulder, and looked at where she touched his shoulder with disgust, before glaring back at Hermione.

" _Ow._ " Pansy interjected, clearly annoyed. She rolled her eyes before watching the scene in front of her.

McGonagall took off her spectacles with one hand and pinched the bridge of her nose with the other as she let out a sigh. "Ms. Granger, Mr. Malfoy-"

A breathy laugh left Hermione's mouth before she continued speaking. "Shall I try and simplify it for you to better comprehend, _drama queen_? I run circles around you and Pansy _combined_ , when it comes to books. And let's not forget, that information usually transfers quite easily for me in application. Just look at the class ranking for each of your previous years at Hogwarts, if you need a little help remembering. But I'm sure your parents are _very_ proud of having their _lovely_ son ranked at number 2."

She smirked, "I mean, top five." While giving him two thumbs up of encouragement she added, "What a feat!"

The other prefects chuckled. Draco lurched forward again, staring down his nose at Hermione. The grey in his eyes were almost non-existent, covered by the blown up black pupil.

His voice dipped into a low menace but the silence that had fallen upon the room made it easy for everyone to hear. "Shut your mouth, mud-"

"Enough!" McGonagall interjected. "Another syllable, Mr. Malfoy and that's five points."

"Bl-"

 _"And_ if _that_ isn't enough to hold your tongue, then I can easily arrange a two week individualised detention plan arranged by both Mr. Filch and Professor Snape?"

Draco and Hermione stared into one another's eyes, neither willing to break away first. She could feel the heavy breath that Draco resiliently pushed out through his nose, on her cheeks. His jaw was clenched and his tongue once again protruded from his cheek, sliding from the top in a downward motion, disappearing once it reached his lips.

"And what about Granger's punishment? She escalated the situation, Professor." Pansy spoke, offended for Draco.

"Yes, Ms. Parkinson. I may be old, but my hearing is very much intact." She gave a pointed look towards the students. "Ms. Granger, you leave me with no choice. Five points from Gryffindor."

It appeared that Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger did have some things in common. House points were probably at the very bottom of the list of things that she cared about. At one point it had been at the very top, right after her class rank, of course. Hermione wondered if perhaps they both also had pretences that they felt they had to adhere to. Right now, she had to play the role of the righteous and overly caring Hermione Granger who worried about such things like house points. She quickly smirked at Draco before actively scowling and leaning back in her seat with her arms crossed, looking irritated. He continued staring after her, and could just see the upturn of the corner of her mouth, as if she was amused.

The image of the swotty Hermione Granger that he had created in his mind from their time at Hogwarts was not fitting this girl that he had gotten in now _two_ heated arguments with, in only the span of perhaps three hours, nonetheless. She never wasted much of her attention on him before. Draco had learned fairly early on that Hermione Granger was more of the ignoring proud and quiet type, but that didn't seem to be the case recently. He was once again leaned back in his seat, his legs outstretched and surpassing the wooden desk, with his hands reached out and folded together. Draco impatiently tapped his pointer finger as he fixedly stared at the wall behind McGonagall, unaware of the resentment that adorned his own face. His lips formed a straight, hard line that matched his glare. No one ever dared to speak to him that way.

 _'Who does she think she is? Filthy mudblood bitch.'_ he thought.

He hated her. He hated how her, nothing but a mudblood, made him always feel so... _inferior._ She should be begging for his attention, happy that he even _chose_ to insult her, picking up any crumbs he gave her, like Pansy did. And yet, she never did.

As if she could sense he thought her name, Pansy inched closer towards Draco and placed her hand on his leg, closer towards his knee, before sliding it gently up his thigh. Her eyes stayed focused on McGonagall. Draco glared over at Hermione once more before attempting to force the swot from his mind. He couldn't help but notice the glazed over look in her eyes before doing so, though.

 _'Just another puzzle piece,'_ he thought.

He didn't like people deviating from the profile he had of them in his mind, which was exactly everything that Hermione was doing. Draco had always been rather observant and saw people as puzzles, fitting things about them into their own unique boxes, to use at a later time, if deemed necessary or simply for entertainment purposes when he was bored. He didn't like change, so it was only natural that this sudden change in her attitude was taking up more of his thoughts than he liked to admit.

Pansy began to rub small circles with the pad of her thumb along his inner thigh. He let out a breath and closed his eyes for only a moment, focusing on the slight tickling sensation, before listening once again to McGonagall.

...

A few more questions were asked about the tournament and prefect duties before they were dismissed.

"This term's updated prefect rounds should appear in your dormitories in their usual spots. I advise you to take a quick look tonight before you head to sleep."

Draco began to lean forward and stand up, but stopped from the sudden pressure he felt on his leg. Pansy had squeezed his thigh firmly and smirked at him when he looked at her. He wore an uninterested expression before slowly standing up and placing a hand behind his neck as he stretched it. Everyone began to file out of the classroom back to their dormitories until only him and Pansy were left. She casually sat down on top of the desk and tugged on Draco's arm to bring him closer to her.

"What are you doing, Pansy?" He stood in between her legs, towering over her, looking uninterestedly in the distance rather than her eyes.

"You know or you wouldn't have stayed behind." She spoke softly as she grabbed his chin and forced it downwards.

Draco sighed before finally looking into her blue eyes. Pansy stretched her torso, keeping eye contact with him as she reached to capture his lips with her own. Both closed their eyes as soon as they touched. She slowly wrapped her hands around his tie and gently pulled him even closer, beginning to part his mouth with her tongue. He allowed her entrance and propped one of his hands on the desk for support as he leaned over her. His other hand found the back of her head and threaded through her short bob, slightly tugging on it. She wrapped her legs around him, and roughly pulled him towards her, causing their hips to collide and touch. As her hips rolled forward, Draco's grip on her hair tightened and he deepened the kiss, sucking on her bottom lip. He rolled his own hips and pulled her head back, trailing kisses from her lips to her neck and biting on the skin just near her collarbone, causing her to shiver.

"Salazar. I loved how infuriated you got at that mudblood bitch earlier." Pansy breathed out.

Draco paused for just a second before resuming to kiss her neck.

"She seems to have forgotten her place. The way she's talking to us, like _we're_ beneath _her._ _"_ Pansy scoffed.

Draco rolled his hips into Pansy again and tried to stay focused on the sensations. He used one of his hands to undo the top three buttons of Pansy's shirt and pull the fabric away before wrapping his arm around her waist as he pressed his other hand into one of her hips. He then proceeded to trail kisses along her collarbone and towards the other side of her neck.

"Imagine if she actually wins the tournament and gets to go to Fordaeo?" Draco could hear the bitterness in Pansy's voice.

He bit down harder on her neck, trying to ignore the irritation that began rising in him.

"Ow. Careful, Draco."

"Sorry," his voice was low as he mumbled into her ear before tugging at the earlobe with his teeth. Pansy sighed with content and rolled her hips forward again, this time with more pressure and at a steady pace that he mirrored, rolling his own hips opposite from hers, grinding upwards when she rolled down and vice versa. She smirked when she could feel how hard he was becoming.

"I just hate that bitch. Fucking, Granger." Pansy breathed out, sounding more unsteady as they continued to grind against one another.

He sighed with irritation before attacking her mouth with his own and tightening his grip on her hips and picking up the pace as he pushed her harder against himself. Pansy moaned and slid her hands up his chest and around his neck, interlacing her fingers. After a few moments she pulled away and began to kiss his neck.

"I swear," she said against his skin before pulling away again. "If there's a prince coming and he takes a weird fascination in Granger, like Krum did, I'm going to lose my shite, Draco."

Draco pulled his entire body away from Pansy, leaving a few inches of space between them as he stared down at her with both of his hands still gripping her hips. She looked at him with confusion.

"Will you _shut up_ about Granger?" Draco stared down at her with his cold, grey eyes.

"I'm just saying. She's a _mudblood_ , yet all these boys seem to have some curious fascination with her. Don't you find that strange? I bet she put a curse on that Krum. The way he was all over her. You know I saw them at one point in the library. He was getting all cozy with her. We started placing bets, seeing how far they'd go. But of course the prude was completely oblivious to it all." Pansy wrapped her hands around Draco's arms to bring him back, but he pulled them out of her grasp and glared at her.

"What's your problem?" She glared back at him.

"I thought you wanted to snog, not recite a whole scroll on reasons you hate Granger. You can do that on your own time. It fucking _disgusting_ talking about that shite while we're snogging, Pans. I'd rather not have images of that mudblood pop into my head. Fucking killed the mood." A look of disgust stayed on his face as he ran his fingers through his hair.

"I'm sorry, I didn't really think-"

"What's new?" He sighed with frustration and walked out of the classroom.

...

Draco could hear Pansy following. She hurriedly rushed behind him, having to walk twice as fast to catch up with him due to his long legs. He turned the corner.

Pansy was looking down, buttoning her shirt as she spoke. "Wait, Draco. I'm sorry, Can you just turn arou-"

She collided into his back, but he didn't move from the impact. "What the _fuck_ , Draco?" She asked incredulously, finishing up the last button.

"What are _you two_ doing together?" Draco spoke.

Pansy immediately looked up and stepped from behind Draco to see who he was addressing. Her face contorted into a seer.

"Granger," she hissed.

Theo and Hermione immediately stifled their laughter upon discovering they weren't alone.

"What are _you two_ doing together, Malfoy? The prefect meeting ended a few minutes ago." Hermione nodded her head between Pansy and Draco.

"I think that's quite obvious, H-... _Granger_." Hermione gave him a warning look, as if Theo had come close to revealing a secret. He started laughing.

Hermione joined in for only a moment before once again stifling it and stared at the wall, forcing the smile from her face, trying her best to look serious, before returning her gaze towards Draco and Pansy.

Pansy watched them with a look of horror and Draco's expression was blank, but his jaw stayed clenched. His eyes continued to suspiciously shift between the two, not able to decide who to focus more on.

"Theo, tell me my mind is playing tricks on me." Pansy sounded almost desperate.

Theo ran his fingers through his hair before shoving both of his hands casually into his trouser's pockets as he sighed. "Rowena's tit, Pans. I was just sneaking around and Granger caught me. I was trying to flirt a little to see if I could be let me off with a warning." He leaned in towards Pansy and Draco and made eye contact with both of them as he obnoxiously whispered loud enough for everyone to hear, "between us three, I _don't_ think it's working."

Theo shrugged dejectedly and smirked before standing back up straight and looked at Hermione, who coughed to cover her laughter.

"And that explains why you two are having a laugh like best mates?" Pansy scoffed.

"Want me to say we were snogging like you two then? Would that make you happy, Pans? Draco?" Theo motioned his head at them, slightly irritated, and rolled his eyes.

Hermione's face contorted into a look of disdain, laughing as if even the notion of that was ridiculous. Draco found his eyes lowering to look at both of their lips.

"No, Pansy." Draco made it a point to look down at Hermione and took a step closer towards her. "Theo wouldn't lower his standards to a," he inched forward just slightly. ", _filthy._." he inched some more.", _little_.." and again. ", _mudblood_." Draco smirked. "And besides, this one's the _greatest_ prude of her _age_ , after all."

He stood back up straight and took a step back, once again creating distance between the them. Hermione began laughing.

" _Clever_ , Malfoy. Good to know that Mr. Filch has been teaching you his intimidation tactics. Vey effective." She laughed and smiled in Theo's direction before looking back at Draco. He was too annoyed at her to notice the glazed look in her eyes.

' _What's with all the fucking smiling?'_ Draco thought irritably. It was unnerving to see her smile at him or Theo for that matter, especially when he was insulting her, and she him.

"Whatever. Let's just go then, Draco and Theo." Pansy tugged on Draco's shirt.

He stared between the two of them once more before allowing Pansy to successfully pull him along by his shirt down the corridor. "Come on, Theo." he instructed.

"Yea, alright. I'm coming, mate," Theo added before taking a step closer to Hermione, resting one hand on her elbow. "Alright, tomorrow then. Ten minutes after breakfast starts. Moaning Myrtle's bathroom." he whispered before winking.

Pansy was walking with a purpose, her grip not loosening on Draco's shirt. He rolled his eyes but continued to allow her to lead him. When he didn't hear any noise from Theo, he turned his head around, still continuing to walk, to see how far away he was and saw him and Hermione still standing next to each other, this time whispering. His gaze flittered down to where Theo's hand was resting on her arm and his eyes narrowed.

' _Are Theo and Granger actually snogging?'_ he felt sick to his stomach at the thought. It was one thing to make jokes about it, but to actually get that intimate with a mudblood. Everything about is was just so..wrong. Draco turned back around, trying to push the image from his head.

"Yes. Perfect." Hermione couldn't contain the large grin on her face as she thought about switching places with Theo the next day. "Better head back with your.. _friends._ " Hermione made a face, as if she felt sick.

"Alright, alright, Granger." Theo yelled out, his hands up in defence as he began walking backwards, still looking at Hermione. "Just the five points, then. No need to take five more. I'll stop with the flirting. I'll go with the 'fucking wankers', as you so nicely put it. A little immature, coming from a prefect, but that's just my two cents." He chuckled and Hermione shushed him before laughing herself. He turned around and jogged to catch up with the other two Slytherins, who would have to have been completely deaf to not hear Theo.

Hermione shook her head and began walking the other direction back to her dormitory. It would take her an extra five minutes, but she didn't want to press her luck any further and catch Malfoy once again, in the prefect tower in one of the corridors. She gathered that all the sixth years were probably on the same floor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Updated a little later, sorry about that! But I hope you guys enjoyed. More bombs dropped about the plot of the story, yay haha.
> 
> Would love if you guys left comments or reviews on your thoughts! I'd love to read them!
> 
> And thank you to those who have read up to this point and those who have reviewed/commented/followed/favorited/voted so far. It's very much appreciated :)


	4. The Switch

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: Was excited for Theo and Hermione's freaky friday moment, and couldn't wait to start writing it. I was planning to just post this one next week or something, but wasn't patient enough for that either haha. Enjoy! A little spice to start the chapter off as well ;)
> 
> More Theo and Hermione friendship coming your way, bikergirl91 & Callidora!
> 
> Warning: explicit content/sexual themes, language

* * *

Theo said the password to the Slytherin common room before turning his head to make a kissing face towards Pansy and Draco as he walked in. Pansy scoffed and watched him till he disappeared. She turned her attention back to Draco, running her hands along his arms, stopping and resting at his forearms.

"I _really_ wasn't thinking, Draco," she said.

He gave her a pointed look.

"Shove off it." Pansy lightly shoved his chest as she huffed out a breath and turned her head, avoiding eye contact with Draco. There was a silent pause. "But I am sorry," she mumbled.

He grabbed her chin and forced her to look up at him. "Prove it."

The irritation melted off of Pansy's face. She interlaced her fingers in his and took him further along the corridor, turning into a small alcove. Only the feint light from a torch in the distance danced along their features, melding with the dark shadows. Pansy leaned up to gently kiss the corner of Draco's mouth as she slid her hands down his chest, going further and further south till her hands toyed with the hem of his shirt. She lifted her hands underneath it, touching his bare skin. Her cold hands caused his lower abdomen to tense as she lightly traced side to side, along the edge of his trousers. Pansy hummed in content as she felt the lean muscles against her fingertips.

Draco leaned his head back against the stone wall and watched Pansy's hands. He held his breath as she moved a hand lower, sliding her palm against him. She repeated the movement again before reaching for the button of his trousers and pulling the zipper down. Her hand slipped behind the waistband of his briefs and she grabbed him, squeezing once before beginning to stroke him in a repetitive motion. He closed his eyes.

"Better?" She whispered into his ear before licking it.

"Fuck yes." He breathed out before opening his eyes and wrapping a hand around the back of her neck. He stared down into her blue eyes with a serious expression before forcing their lips together. He never wore much emotions on his face when he looked at her.

Pansy pulled away and stared at him with a determined expression. She had a concentrated look on her face that reminded him of Hermione. Him and Pansy both felt the twitch in his trousers. Draco cleared his throat and looked away from her with an irritated expression. He tried to push the thought from his mind, but it seemed to be burned into his eyes. She might as well be standing there herself, with her hand wrapped around him, wearing that same expression, as if she were trying to figure out the best way to pleasure him, much like she was trying to figure out how to make a potion. He twitched again and Pansy had begun to stroke him at that exact moment, causing a deep moan to escape from his throat. He was thrown off from how sensitive he became in that moment and how pleasurable it felt.

' _What the fuck._ ' he thought bitterly. He wanted to rip Pansy's hand away, but at the same time, was determined to prove to himself that his body was reacting that way because of what Pansy was doing, and for no other reason. He blamed it on Pansy, from their earlier encounter. It seemed that the mudblood was still in his head, from when she had gone on about her incessantly, when they previously were grinding on one another. Clearly, his body was just a little confused.

Draco closed his eyes again and began to kiss Pansy with fervent determination. Anything to get Granger out of his head. He felt sick to his stomach. Pansy reciprocated for only a moment before using her strength to separate them and removed her hand from his trousers.

"What?" Draco demanded, clearly annoyed. Pansy and him both stood staring at one another and catching their breaths.

"Calm down, Draco. I was thinking about what you said."

"I say a lot of things, Pans." He rolled his eyes.

"Actually, you don't," she rolled her eyes back at him. "I'm going to _prove_ it to you." She smirked and lowered to her knees.

...

Draco exhaled as soon as her lips wrapped around him. She began moving at a steady pace, causing his breathing to become more ragged. He focused on the sensations and actively stared at Pansy as she slid her lips up and down him, making sure to use her tongue as well. After a few moments, the feelings of pleasure were beginning to lessen. His mind began to wander. He thought of the tournament and remembered what Pansy had said about Krum and Granger in the library. A flash of Hermione on her knees instead of Pansy popped into his mind. A shock of pleasure spread through his body, causing a shiver up his spine. He felt Pansy smile around him and she quickened her pace. His eyes were squeezed shut as his breathing became more shallow. He clenched his jaw, pushing the image out of his head. A different image of Hermione popped into his mind. This time it was her standing in front of him with just her black lace bra and knickers. The exact image he saw only a few hours ago. She was the last person he expected to wear knickers like that or have a body like that, for that matter. He could feel himself getting closer to an orgasm and Pansy was moving her mouth at an even faster pace. His heart was pounding hard as his ragged breaths lifted his chest up and down. Draco's hands were tense, grabbing onto Pansy's shoulders.

"Pans, wait." He breathed out.

She ignored him and kept going. He felt sick to his stomach at the thought of coming with the image of Hermione's half naked body in his mind. Draco squeezed even tighter on her shoulders.

"Stop, Pansy." He spat out in a demanding voice.

Pansy mumbled something he couldn't make out before continuing. He was going to come any second, he could feel himself just on the edge. Draco felt fear begin to rise in his chest. He forcefully pushed her off of him, causing her to fall on her bum.

"Ow. What the _Actual Fuck_ , Draco?!" Pansy shouted, as she pushed herself off from the floor.

Draco watched her with a glare as he tucked his penis back into his briefs and zipped up his trousers, not even bothering with the button before frustratingly turning around and leaving her alone in the alcove.

Once he turned the corner, away from the corridor, he rested his forehead along the stone wall and released a deep breath as he waited there for a moment. Draco closed his eyes and attempted to occlude. He had gotten better over the summer, but it was still difficult for him when his mind was distracted. And currently he was distracted on a whole new level. His eyes were squeezed shut as he took another deep breath and attempted to clear his mind. He pushed the images of Hermione out of his mind, until he felt the hardness in his trousers begin to subside. Draco pushed his fists against the wall, hard. The sick feeling in his stomach came back, stronger than before. He finally stood up straight again and walked back to his dormitory with a sour taste in his mouth.

...

"Herm!" Theo whispered as he stuck his head into the bathroom and surveyed the room before stepping inside.

One of the stall doors opened and Hermione walked out. He pulled a large flask out of his robe's pocket and wiggled it as he held it up.

"You're going to have to teach me how you made this, one of these days. _And_ how you keep it preserved." Hermione took the flask and opened it to smell the potion.

"Do I, Theo Nott, _actually_ have a bargaining chip for _the_ Hermione Granger?" He gasped.

Hermione looked up with a serious expression. "100%. I'd easily become your bitch for that information."

Theo blinked before letting out a loud laugh. "Sorry. I still sometimes can't believe it's _you_ saying those things. Did you manage to get some vials?"

Hermione handed the flask back to Theo and took out a small coin purse from her robes and opened it, taking out six vials that were much larger than the purse itself. "Are you _sure_ this is enough for the whole day?"

"Yes. And that's from personal experience. After the initial ingestion, as long as you take a sip anytime you get that clenching feeling in your gut, it will prolong the effects for a few more hours. Honestly three vials each is overkill, but better safe than sorry." Theo smiled at Hermione.

"Agreed. Alright." She nodded and pulled out two glass cups from her bag.

Theo divided the contents of the flask evenly between the two glasses, filling it to the very top, before closing the flask and slipping it back into his robes.

"Also, should probably mention. After the third clench, better take a sip right then and there or get out. You probably have thirty seconds before the effects will begin to reverse."

He took a cup from Hermione and they both plucked a hair from their own heads and placed it in their cups before exchanging them.

"Noted." Hermione was grinning ear to ear. "I don't think I've been this excited or nervous in a while," she eagerly looked at the bubbling potion.

"Making me blush, Herm." Theo added and Hermione laughed.

"Alright, I'll get in the stall and toss my clothes out for you, yea? And _please_ , don't stare too hard at my body, Theo." Hermione winced at the thought.

" _Please_ , Herm. I am _just_ as weary about having to see your naked body. I'm supposed to see you as an old grandpa, remember? This will make things considerably more difficult. You owe me, putting me in such a horrible situation and all that."

"Yea, yea." She added before heading in the stall.

"You know, it's rather pointless going into the stall. We're about to literally be naked in each other's bodies." Theo shouted out as he slipped off his robe and began to unbutton his shirt.

"I know, I know. It's just the principal, I suppose?" Hermione slipped her white button up off over her head and unzipped her skirt. "Don't forget to use scourgify!" she shouted before shamelessly tossing her knickers over to Theo.

Theo stood outside the stall door and was throwing his own clothes over it, leaving them hanging for Hermione to grab when she needed them.

"Take at least three large gulps and set the glass down as you wait for the potion to take effect before attempting to fill the rest of the vials. Trust me." Theo added before bringing the cup to his lips. "Bottoms up." He held the glass up to no one in particular before drinking the polyjuice.

"I already knew that bit." Hermione said.

Two clinks could be heard as both Hermione and Theo placed their glasses down.

"I hate this part." Hermione groaned out and clutched her stomach. She felt her hair begin to shorten and her body grow in size. Her whole body felt like tiny hands were punching her from underneath her skin. The stall suddenly felt more cramped. She didn't look down as she reached for the black briefs and slipped them on.

"This is weirddddd.." she spoke. Her voice was deep and she felt the vibrations in her throat along with the bobbing of her now newly protruding Adam's apple. "Oh, our voices! I completely forgot about that."

"You're telling me. And I don't half-arse mischievousness, Herm. Got to tick all the boxes, or you get caught." He spoke, his voice now sounding much more delicate.

He clapped his small hands together. "This is going to be too good." A mischievous smile now adorned Theo's new face.

He slipped on Hermione's outfit and began to fill the vials as Hermione, now Theo, walked out with the glass in her hand.

"Fuck, do I always look that attractive?" Theo asked.

Hermione gave a small spin and chuckled. She filled her own vials before slipping them back into the small coin purse and placing it in her new, bigger robes. They exchanged book bags and both held out their wands.

"Right. Last piece of evidence." They placed their own wands into the other's hand and slipped them into their robes before beginning to walk to the door to leave.

"Where's this _Moaning_ Myrtle?" Theo asked, raising his eyebrows.

Hermione laughed at seeing herself making the sexual innuendo. "She's usually not here in the early mornings. Wait." Hermione paused, shoving her hand against's his arm.

"Ow, _Theo_." Theo added with a smirk as he rubbed his arm.

Hermione pulled her large hands away from him. "Sorry. Not used to having the strength of a 6'1 _man_. I look absolutely pathetic from this height, by the way. I can't believe I _actually_ thought I could make myself look intimidating _._ " She looked down at herself with scrutiny.

"It's all about the aura. _Trust_ me. You can look intimidating when you want to, Herm. Why do we need to wait? Also, here." He took out a packet of mints.

"What's this for?" She took the mints and inspected them.

"Didn't want to leave things to chance. I wasn't sure if, well," Theo rubbed the back of his neck. "Since it's your first time being a boy, if you would have any self control down there when you see a fit bloke or something."

Hermione's eyes widened in realisation. "Merlin, you are thorough. It can't be that hard to control your own penis, surely?"

Theo shrugged. "For the most part. But if you'll be experiencing things like you're a thirteen year old boy going through puberty for the first time, then yes. You don't even need to see anything attractive sometimes. It could even be a simple breeze and before you know it, you've got a full on boner."

"Really?!" Hermione asked incredulously.

"This is odd, talking about this with your voice, with myself." Theo chuckled, the soft sound of Hermione's voice filling the room. "I mean, go on and see. Maybe you want to see what it's like to have a proper hard-on. But keep the mints on you, just for a security measure. " Theo quirked his eyebrows up with amusement.

"You know what, we should probably establish some rules."

"Ugh, rules." Theo groaned and ran his hand down his face. "Granger, didn't we get past this over the summer?"

Hermione laughed upon hearing those words from her own mouth. "Don't worry, nothing _excessive_ , but just another _security_ measure. I know how you are, Theo."

"Alright, let's hear them, then." He leaned against the wall.

"No sex or letting anyone touch me in this region." She brought her hand closer towards Theo, towards her body's pelvis area.

Theo held up his hands in defence, "Whoa, whoa, whoa. Watch where you're bringing those hands, mister." He laughed at the pointed look Hermione gave him, finding it an odd to see such a typical Hermione expression on his own face. "I mean, I kind of figured that one. What else?"

"I think that's it for me. Do you have any?"

Theo raised an eyebrow. "Really, that's it? No other rules?"

"Well I figured I didn't want to take... _all_ the fun out of it?" Hermione looked at her own face hesitantly.

Theo let out a loud whistle.

"I can whistle!" Hermione looked surprised.

"Something the great Hermione Granger _can't_ do?"

"I gave up third year. But clearly, a mistake on my part." Hermione gently grabbed her wrist from Theo and looked at the clock on it.

"We should probably head back soon. Breakfast is almost halfway over. You should tell me your rules." She unzipped one of the small pockets of her book bag that Theo had slung over his shoulder and pulled out a piece of paper. "Also, this is why I told you to wait. My class schedule. I already have yours."

Theo took the note with a raised brow.

"No sex as well?" he shrugged nonchalantly. "I mean, I don't know when, in the next few hours, you think there would be time for sex, though. I've clearly been doing this Hogwarts thing all wrong." He winked before he seemed to ponder something. "Actually, you know what, Herm? If you happen to stumble upon a willing woman, and find yourself just as willing, knock yourself out. And I expect a whole report on the experience. Or even if you just want a proper wank with yourself, I'll allow it. No report required for the latter though."

Hermione shook her head in amusement.

He continued speaking. "I would say if you find a willing male as well, but given I'm a straight male myself and Hogwarts seems to have little Rita Skeeters in training, let's not risk it. But kissing, you have free range. A little kissing scandal never _really_ hurt anyone." He brought his hand to lift the robe that his body was wearing and looked with curiosity. "How's junior doing down there? Not getting hard?"

Hermione blushed and slapped his hand away, her hand. "Well it was fine before you started giving it some attention." She cleared her throat.

Theo chuckled. "The mints are there when you need them," he said in a sing song voice. "But a wank helps with that too, in _case_ you were wondering. Can I touch myself? Me in _your_ body, that is. Not literally _me_ , touching _you_ , as _me_. Damn, that's a cluster fuck of words."

"No!" Hermione said without any hesitation, looking at Theo with wide eyes.

She felt her cheeks heating up and to her surprise, a tight feeling low in her stomach. Hermione pulled the robes away and looked down at her pelvis region. "Merlin, I think I'm feeling something!"

Loud laughter bursted from Theo's lips. Hermione found it strange to hear herself laughing so boisterously and it became contagious as she joined in.

Once the laughter subsided, Theo wiped the tears from his eyes and spoke again.

"Well, I don't give a flying fuck if you decide to have a go at Theo Jr. But as far as controlling it, it's all about the mind. You just have to distract yourself and think about _anything_ else. And in regards to _your_ body," he motioned his hands up and down his now feminine body, "I was just making sure, Herm," he shrugged. "You did say _other_ people. You're welcome, for deciding to clarify." He smirked.

There was a short pause before Theo stood up straight again. "You want me to show you how to take a piss?" he casually asked.

"Yea, that's probably important." Hermione nonchalantly added, so they walked back to the stall.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: This fanfic is turning into a 95% Hermione and Theo friendship and 5% Hermione and Draco's enemies to lovers relationship haha. I'm glad you guys are enjoying their relationship though! We all could use a friend like Theo.
> 
> Thought I'd make the chapter shorter this time and see how you guys liked it.
> 
> Did you guys' feel like your were trudging along trying to get through the previous chapters, or was it still a good read and you were finished before realising? What do you guys like better? Longer or shorter?
> 
> Let me know and I'll try to adjust accordingly :) If I don't get any feedback, then I guess it will just vary, but most of them will probably continue to be on the longer side, I think.
> 
> Even if it's just one review, I love to get them and read what you guys think! So thank you for leaving them. I read each review probably at least 5 times each hahaha. And thank you for all the kudos, favourites, follows, etc., the works ;) Let me know how you guys are liking this Hermione and Draco as well! What are some of the thoughts you guys have of them so far?


	5. Theo Nott Does Eat Eggs

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I won't lie. I didn't update because all I wanted to do was be lazy and read Dramione fanfiction for the last few weeks hahaha. But I'm back, along with my desire to continue this story! I constantly go back and forth with wanting to write vs wanting to read. Anyone else like that?
> 
> I hope it isn't confusing with when it's Hermione speaking/doing something vs when it's Theo. But if it is and you plan on following along with the story, then please either DM me or leave a review if it was confusing to follow. In my mind, I see the scene I'm writing, so it's obvious to me, which I realise may not be the case for you guys! I tried to reiterate who it was every so often, just in case, but I didn't want to make it too much and constantly repeat things like Hermione, actually Theo, etc. If it is, I'll rewrite the chapter to try and make it more clear, that way the reading experience is a bit better for you guys!
> 
> RECAP: It's the first official day of their sixth year. Hermione and Theo made a bet to switch places, using polyjuice potion, courtesy of Theo Nott.
> 
> WARNING: drug use, language, minor suggestive themes

**AN:** I won't lie. I didn't update because all I wanted to do was **be lazy** and read **Dramione fanfiction** for the last few weeks hahaha. But I'm back, along with my desire to continue this story! I constantly go back and forth with wanting to write vs wanting to read. Anyone else like that?

I hope it isn't confusing with when it's Hermione speaking/doing something vs when it's Theo. But if it is and you plan on following along with the story, then please either **DM** me or **leave a review** if it **was** confusing to follow. In my mind, I see the scene I'm writing, so it's obvious to me, which I realise may not be the case for you guys! I tried to reiterate who it was every so often, just in case, but I didn't want to make it too much and constantly repeat things like Hermione, actually Theo, etc. **If it is** , I'll rewrite the chapter to try and make it more clear, that way the reading experience is a bit better for you guys!

 **RECAP:** It's the first official day of their sixth year. Hermione and Theo made a bet to switch places, using polyjuice potion, courtesy of Theo Nott.

 **WARNING:** drug use, language, minor suggestive themes

* * *

"Still can't believe my penis was the first you've ever seen," Theo said incredulously, walking with a quicker pace than normal to keep up with the now 6" Hermione.

"Contrary to popular belief, Theo, I am _not_ the femme fatale everyone at Hogwarts says I am," she glanced down at Theo, who was currently polyjuiced to look like herself, with a smirk.

"The boys of Hogwarts will be sorely disappointed, Herm." He looked up towards his own face with a devious smile. "Except the ones with a virgin fetish, that is."

They continued their walk towards the Great Hall.

"I have _seen_ one before," Hermione's breath halted for a moment, "just.. in a textbook," she added before clearing her throat.

"Naturally," Theo chuckled. "I'm glad our little polyjuice adventure has enlightened you further on the male anatomy. But forewarning," Theo held up a hand. "Penises come in _many_ different shapes and sizes. Not all will look as beautiful and godlike as mine. So don't be too disappointed, yea?" He chuckled.

"My poor virginal eyes have been eternally ruined." Hermione snorted and glanced down at Theo.

All jokes aside, she couldn't help but think how his skills were quite impressive. She was the only other person their age, that she knew of at least, to brew a polyjuice potion. And he managed to get the potion to correctly alter their voices, something she hadn't and actually forgot completely about and never went back to figure out her mistake.

_I was rather focused on how to not look like a cat/human hybrid at the time and a little busy being paralysed by a ginormous snake, to be fair..._

_And_ how was he able to store the potion in it's state prior to the addition of a piece from the desired subject? _T_ _hat_ was perhaps the most impressive part. He certainly had quite a few useful tricks up his sleeve and she wondered what else he was knowledgable about, besides polyjuice potions and portkeys.

"Theo, do you put in any genuine effort in your classes?" Hermione asked.

Theo raised an eyebrow at her curiously. "Not particularly, but when I need to. Why do you ask?"

"I think you'd be ranked second in our class, if you did. Might even come close to first, giving me a proper challenge for once." Hermione smirked.

She would never admit to anyone that Malfoy had in fact _many times_ , academically stressed her out. Much more than she'd cared for. The thought of her childhood bully besting her, sometimes resulted in far too many trips to the library, even by Hermione Granger's standards. She was always a firm believer that knowledge was power. And she enjoyed feeling more powerful than Malfoy and her other peers. It was like a security blanket. Plus, being completely immersed in her studies always gave her a proper excuse to skive away from everyone else, which she would be needing _much_ more this year than she did her previous years.

Theo whistled and turned around, walking backwards now. He gave Hermione a cheeky smile. She still was amazed that her body was able to make such a noise.

"The absolute highest of compliments that one should expect from _the_ Hermione Granger, herself." Theo bowed rather dramatically, still managing to successfully walk backwards a few steps ahead of Hermione. "This would be _much_ more satisfying if you'd have said it when you were in your own body, though."

She found it amusing, seeing him walk at a quicker pace to stay ahead.

He smirked at Hermione. "Though, I have to disagree. I'd _easily_ surpass you."

Hermione playfully shook her head in disagreement. "Even with me planning to relax," she held up a finger when Theo's head jerked and his mouth exaggeratedly gaped open in sarcastic shock, _"a little._ And _occasionally_ pull things out of my arse this year, I'll still academically outclass you, _even_ if you decided to put in more of an effort. I'm just too good at being number one, Theo." She shrugged with a smirk.

"You're beginning to sound more and more like me, you know that, Herm? And is that a challenge?" He gave her a pointed look.

Hermione pushed the tips of her fingers into her forehead and closed her eyes.

"I'm painfully aware. And _please_ , merlin, no," she groaned. "If this turns into a competition, my entire being will force me to _actually_ obliterate you," she looked up, "academically speaking, of course. And I don't have the mental capacity for that this year. I'm already stressed with the thought of putting on the act of goody-two-shoes Hermione around the rest of Hogwart's students and faculty. Not to mention, there will be an _actual_ competition here at Hogwarts this year, that I've already very much planned on winning." She looked down into her own brownish hazel eyes. "But if you are serious, Theo Nott, I will win. _And_ with pure, honest hard work." She gave him a brazen side eye.

She was already in a competition with Malfoy, unbeknownst to him, as it was. _What's one more_ annoyingly _smart Slytherin._

Theo turned back around right before they rounded a corner and they began walking down the stairs.

"I'd _definitely_ beat you, then. I'm quite devious, Herm. Remember? And now we're too good of friends for you to rat on me." he said with a wink. "But I digress," he clasped Hermione's broad shoulder with his dainty hand and gave her a solemn look, "I most certainly will _not_ be pulling _anything_ out of my arse this year. I've always preferred as little effort as possible when half-arsing things. I'm simply just going to.. let the shite fall," Theo gracefully motioned his hand downward, to further emphasise his meaning, "out when it does. And what's left sitting in the toilet, is what I will proudly hand to my professors." He mimicked scooping out the shite and handing it to an invisible figure ahead of them.

"Thank you for that visual." Hermione gave him a strange look and chuckled.

"You're the one that brought arses and shite into the conversation, I just gave it some character." Theo quipped.

Hermione playfully rolled her eyes before lightly shoving Theo with her shoulder and laughed once again when he stumbled much more than she thought he would.

"Gently, Herm. You're wielding the muscles of a powerful man." Theo straightened himself upright.

"Please, look at my body. A first year could push me over."

"I just hope you're better at grasping your wand than you are a penis, then" he added, causing laughter to spill out of both of their mouths.

Theo had a talent for bringing out Hermione's childish side. She had been so busy playing mother with Harry and Ron, and everyone else kind of placed her in that box as well, after that. She never really had the time nor opportunity to surrender to more childish antics and no one seemed to want her to either. Except Theo. Hermione never was aware how much fun she was truly missing out on. She smiled at him, and he smiled back.

"So, what's this about a competition at Hogwarts?" Theo asked when they finally were able to catch their breaths.

...

Once they finally reached the entrance to the Great Hall, they became silent as they walked in together. It was quite loud and rambunctious, more so than normal. But it was always like that at the start of term. Everyone was finally able to catch up with those they hadn't seen over the summer and missed on the Hogwarts Express. Many students received packages from home as well, which consisted of small gifts or things students had forgotten to pack in their trunks.

Hermione stuck a foot in the direction of the Gryffindor table, purely out of habit, before she stopped herself and began walking towards Slytherin's. Blaise Zabini had noticed Theo and nodded his head towards her as a greeting, which caught the attention of Pansy Parkinson and Draco Malfoy. Hermione smirked upon seeing them. Pansy was always rather touchy-feely with Malfoy, something he did _not_ reciprocate. One could chalk it up to him not being into public displays of affection, but Hermione liked to imagine he was suffering inside. The sour expression on his face whenever Pansy would run her hands through his hair, certainly sold the idea enough to Hermione. They both looked at her for half a second before their eyes flittered to the polyjuiced Theo. It was interesting to Hermione, to watch both of their eyes glare at the same moment, upon seeing her own body, and odd that she had not _technically_ been the recipient this time. When their eyes darted back to her, as Theo, there was no longer a glare, but a cautious stare.

_Blood supremacist pricks._

She rolled her eyes at no one in particular which is when she then noticed Theo still beside her, also walking to the Slytherin table. She looked back at the Gryffindor table and saw Harry and Ron talking rather enthusiastically with Seamus Finnigan, unaware of her presence. Ginny on the other hand, was watching Hermione with a confused expression on her face, her brows knitted together.

Hermione slightly shook her head before effortlessly grabbing the back of Theo's shirt with one hand and lightly shoving him in the direction of her house's table without a single word, all while continuing to walk over to Blaise. Her and Theo both met each other's gaze with raised brows and an almost challenging look.

"What-" Theo began to ask.

Hermione nudged her head towards the Gryffindor table with a pointed look. Theo casually held up his hands in defence before turning his head back around and walking to the table, which caused Hermione to laugh under her breath. It was entertaining, to say the least, seeing her own self mimic all of Theo's classic body language. She'd have to work on that, to not cause too much suspicion.

She looked forward again, noticing the strange stares she was getting from quite a few of the older Slytherins. Hermione sat down in the empty spot opposite to Blaise Zabini. Two or three spots down was where Pansy and Draco sat, also opposite to her. It appeared Draco had lost interest in Theo's presence, now that Hermione was no longer by his side. He was focused on something in his lap. Pansy, on the other hand, looked like she was contemplating what to say.

"Going to elaborate what that was all about?" Blaise gently pulled a strawberry from his fork with his immaculate white teeth.

She had always been rather aware of teeth, given her parents were dentists, and the insecurity of the size of her own teeth _once upon a time_. It was Blaise Zabini's teeth that had caused Hermione Granger to first notice him last school year. After that, she sometimes found herself occasionally studying him. He hung around Draco more often than not, but he was always so reserved and quiet. He was different, to her, at least she assumed, which peaked her curiosity.

She wasn't sure how to respond to Blaise. If he was like Draco, and her assumptions were incorrect, it would be better for her to be vile. _Wouldn't it?_

"Oh you know.. just playing with fire." She casually added as she grabbed a plate to help herself to breakfast, not quite sure how to respond and most definitely not feeling casual.

 _'Playing with fire? What does that even mean, Hermione?'_ she thought, hiding the confused look on her face.

Hermione scooped some scrambled eggs onto her plate. Blaise raised an eyebrow, his face remaining stoic as ever. She glanced at his face and froze for just a second.

_Does Theo not eat eggs? Stop. You're overthinking things, Hermione. Just act natural. Today, Theodore Nott eats eggs._

"That's all you've got to say?" he asked, sounding slightly surprised.

Hermione let out a small breath of relief. _See? The eggs were a perfectly fine choice._

"Uh..yeah, I guess." Hermione responded as she picked up her fork.

"Theo Nott, _finally_ a man of few words." A cheeky smile slowly crept onto Blaise's face and he leaned forward. "Mate, is there something going on between you and Granger?" He had an amused glint in his eyes.

 _Why do Slytherin's love jumping to that conclusion?_ In that moment, she thought perhaps Lavender and Parvati were sorted into the wrong house.

Hermione shoved a bit of eggs into her mouth as she blinked, staring Blaise in his eyes. She had no idea what to say or how to act. He didn't look angry about the notion, which Hermione took as a good sign and it surprised her just a little, while also confirming he was different, like Theo. Her other hand, still by her lap, inched towards Theo's large robe pockets, where she felt three small balls. She internally thanked him before quickly finishing the food in her mouth. She imagined she looked like a deer in headlights.

 _I need to be high for this._ She plopped one of the bonbons into her mouth and leaned forward.

"Possibly," she said in a whisper and raised a brow. "She's gotten quite fit," she shrugged and cleared her throat before plopping another bonbon into her mouth.

 _Really high._ She thought to herself.

If she learned anything from the countless cheesy romantic comedies that her parents watched, it was that, _that_ was always excuse enough for the main male character to deviate from his normal behavior. She hoped that transferred over in real life as well. Hermione racked over what she knew about boys. It wasn't much.

_They're quite physical, aren't they?_

And according to Lavender Brown, they might as well live and breathe for the sole purpose of getting a quick snog from one bird to the next. She could work with that. Blaise returned to his normal position, perfect aristocratic posture, and a hint of a smirk still dancing on his lips. Hermione began to feel the effects of the weed bon bon. It wasn't as intense as last night, but she still felt herself become more relaxed.

_Already wore off a bit, perhaps that's safer for today._

"She has, hasn't she." Blaise responded, looking down as he grabbed a cluster of grapes and placed them onto his plate.

Hermione did her best to hide her slight shock, but it was mute. She had just taken a sip of pumpkin juice, choking on it at Blaise's response. She hadn't expected him to agree with her. Although she did consider _herself_ to be attractive, she didn't expect others to, much less a pureblood who grew up being taught that her kind was less than dirt, to think so. The only time she received male attention at Hogwarts was from Viktor Krum and the night of the Yule Ball.

_But again, he's different. Like Theo._

She forced the rest of the gulp down her throat and wiped the bit of juice that had managed to dribble down from her lips. The early signs of stubble was felt on her chin as her fingers glided upwards against it.

"And not just her face. She's not drowning herself in her school uniform and robes anymore. Perhaps that's for you? She looked quite eager to come join you for breakfast." He quirked his eyebrows up and nodded his head towards the Gryffindor table before plopping a grape in his mouth.

_Someone's observant and being rather pleasant._

He could've been a lot more crude, in all honesty. She expected him to, after last nights little episode and the comment he made.

She didn't think her wearing a more flattering size of uniforms would be noticeable to anyone. It was more for herself, really. She looked back at Theo, observing the fit of her uniform on her body. As this was the first time she was actually able to see her body from someone else's eyes though, she had nothing to compare it to.

"You think so?" When Hermione turned her head back around, she caught the stare of Pansy and Draco again.

"New goal to become an official blood traitor by the end of the year, then, Theo?" Pansy pulled a grape off of her fork, giving Hermione's body, that was seated next to Ginny Weasley, a pointed glare before turning her attention back to her housemate.

"Right, Pansy. He's got to _marry_ a mudblood to be an official blood traitor. Even having a bastard doesn't qualify for such an _honour_." Blaise spoke, not even bothering to look in her direction.

Hermione wondered if what Blaise said was true, finding it more fascinating than anything else. She had years of experience, not give a flying rat's arse on how she looked in the eyes of her pureblood schoolmates. Instead, she found herself more curious with their traditions and etiquette, but there wasn't much information about such things in the Hogwarts library, which only intrigued her more. Like forbidden fruit. She made eye contact with Pansy and had the sudden urge for mischief.

"Jealous, then, Pans?" Hermione added with a smirk.

"Excuse me?" Pansy recoiled at Hermione's question.

"If Draco's not _satisfying_ you enough, you can just say so, you know? We won't laugh. At you."

Hermione's insinuation along with the weed made her mind wander for just a moment.

_Could I get someone pregnant with Theo's child? Could he get pregnant in my body? How would that even work?_

She missed what anyone else had said, but was rather aware of the irritated and yet bored expression on Malfoy's face as he glared at her, clearly waiting for a response.

"Mate, it's still too early for him. He doesn't even know what you've just said. Look." Blaise said, pointing his fork up at Hermione's face.

Hermione cleared her throat, overtly aware of her protruding Adam's apple, as she simply shrugged and began finishing her eggs. The gnawing feeling of hunger seemed to grow, so she took a few slices of toast as well. She spread a gracious amount of strawberry jam on one of them and as she brought it to her mouth to take a bite, she noticed everyone staring at her.

She sighed in irritation, but couldn't help but feeling like she had done something un-Theo-like. Why else would they all be staring at her like that?

 _Alright, you know Theo. Time to play him up, Granger._ She spoke to herself, much like her muggle little league coach did to her back in the day.

"Might I be so bold in asking everyone to _kindly_ _fuck off_?" She rolled her eyes rather dramatically before aggressively taking a bite of the toast.

This seemed to appease them. Breakfast ended shortly afterwards. A few students went up to leave, but most stayed, as there was still an hour till their first class. Hermione pulled Theo's schedule out of her robes, curious to know what classes he had chosen.

Her eyes landed immediately on Alchemy. _Not putting in an effort, Theo? Complete bollocks._ _Maybe he could beat me for the top spot._

He clearly had received the highest of marks, if he was able to take Alchemy. Given it was such an advanced and niche course at Hogwarts, Hermione had been informed that it was small enough for all the houses to be combined into one class and there would be very few students, even less than those in the Advanced courses, which she also happened to notice on Theo's schedule.

 _What a liar. His schedule makes him look like a complete swot...like me._ She rolled her eyes.

* * *

If one _failed_ their O.W.L.s, they would have to repeat the classes they failed, over the summer.

If they _passed them with the bare minimum_ , they were allowed to continue taking their classes at a regular level which covered a broad study of that year's material, while also preparing them further to retake their O.W.L.s and begin to introduce them to N.E.W.T.s preparatory coursework as well.

If their marks were _above average_ , they would be allowed to take an intermediate level class that delved even deeper into the subject, focusing heavily on an abundance of in-depth scroll essays and preparing for N.E.W.T.s, naturally. Most students would be taking intermediate classes, as it was the normal next step.

And _finally_ , if the student received _extremely high marks_ on their O.W.L.s, then they would be allowed the option of taking advanced classes for the subjects they received their high marks in. It is quite clear by then, that the student has shown a plethora of knowledge for the subject and therefore would have less busy work and tests, instead rather focusing more on a small number of time consuming, demanding, and difficult projects. Professors would be there to oversee the class and offer a helping hand when needed, while keeping and eye on the projects.

* * *

His first class on Monday, today, was **Advanced** **Ancient Runes** , like her. Professor McGonagall had informed her yesterday that many of the students who had passed their O.W.L.s. had dropped the course altogether this year, much to her surprise, so that was another class that would include all houses. She would see Theo yet again, but still not Harry or Ron. They had both decided to drop the course.

The second class was **Advanced** **Potions**. Their year was always paired together with Slytherin, ever since first year, but now, since only a select few could take the advanced course, it was once again going to be all houses. She knew Harry and Ron were in advanced potions as well. That was going to be _interesting._ Hermione couldn't help the small upturn of the corner of her lips as she thought of them becoming aware of Theo and her's friendship.

Next on his schedule, after lunch, was again, similar to hers. **Advanced** **Arithmancy**. She had no idea he had taken arithmancy.

And after that, before dinner, would be **Advanced** **Defence Against the Dark Arts** , now combined with Slytherin starting this year. As to why they decided to do so their sixth year, was unknown to Hermione. She rolled her eyes at the thought, remembering the existence of Malfoy. No doubt, he was just smirking when Snape informed the Slytherins. Yet another class where no other students were there to stand in the way of Harry, Ron, herself and his bullying.

Hermione folded the schedule and placed it back in her robes, not bothering to look at the rest of the week. This year, fifth year and up would only have classes Monday through Wednesday, to give students time to focus on their homework, studying, and the upcoming competition that was to be announced at dinner that evening with the arrival of their new guests from Fordaeo Magisk Skole.

...

Pansy gently pushed her hands against the large table as she stood up, stealing Hermione's attention. She leaned into Draco, tracing her fingers along the back of his hand.

"I'll see you for potions, yea?" she half whispered, but it was still loud enough for both Blaise and Hermione to hear.

Draco still hadn't bothered to look up, completely ignoring Pansy.

 _Her and Malfoy taking regular potions?_ Hermione smiled to no one in particular, looking rather smug. She had wondered if they would be in any of her advanced classes when Professor McGonagall informed her about how they were organised. Malfoy was always second to her in their class rank, but O.W.L.s were different than classwork. He could have very easily been a horrible standardised test taker. She may have said a silent prayer that he failed them all... Granted, she was a little surprised to hear that he _wasn't_ in advanced potions, as she assumed he was quite skilled in the class, but she never paid too much attention, to be fair. Still, she knew a blessing when she heard one.

Hermione opened her mouth, speaking a little too loudly to Blaise. "Suddenly the title blood traitor is sounding rather appetising, wouldn't you agree, Blaise?"

Blaise raised a brow, looking between the two. Pansy straightened her back, glaring harshly at Theo's face. Her lips were in a tense smile.

"Always something funny to add." she folded her arms. "Does your father know that your jokes about mudbloods and blood-traitors are starting to involve yourself, Theo?"

"You know," Hermione lifted a finger in the air, as if to recall something. "I don't think I owled him my list of jokes that I would be using for this year, yet. I should probably get on that."

Draco scoffed in amusement, causing Hermione to look over. His face was looking down into his lap still, and had been down for the majority of time that Hermione had been there. His response only fuelled Pansy's irritation, as she hadn't managed to get one, even with all her _appeal.._

"It's alright, maybe I'll do it for you then. Save you the _fucking_ trouble."

_Bollocks. She wouldn't actually do that, right?_

Hermione didn't know too many details of Theo's father, but she distinctly remembered him mentioning that dear old Raf, Theo's nickname for the old man (rich arsehole father), made Lucius Malfoy look like Godrick Gryffindor, and that said _plenty._

_Backtrack, Hermione._

"Come off it, Pans. You know I'm just madly jealous of Malfoy. I mean, when are you going to stroke my hand like you do his?" Hermione almost dry-heaved, but managed to stay composed. She even added a wink for good measure.

She had to admit, she enjoyed being a Slytherin, so far. For once, she wasn't being looked down on by them, which was a nice change. And she still got to argue with them. It was a win win situation for her.

Pansy's sputtered, unsure what to say. Draco had finally looked up.

"Always the flirt, but never flirted with, it seems." Hermione smirked at Pansy, which seemed to snap her out of her daze.

She casually stepped over the long bench and walked closer to Blaise before leaning forward on one arm and grabbing Theo's tie, roughly pulling Hermione forward.

"I was simply confounded by the idea that you think we would ever _,"_ she tugged even further on the tie, their faces only now only a few inches apart, _"ever,_ be on the same level, Theo Nott."

"I mean, I think I've made it quite clear, I don't mind slumming it, Pans." Hermione gave Pansy a daring look, inching forward. Neither of them were smiling.

"I won't let _you_ make taking the mick out of me your new past-time activity to try and forget about your fucked up life."

 _Well, she's spot on, isn't she._ Hermione wasn't expecting her words to hit so close to home with her.

"You sure about that?" Hermione tilted her head tauntingly, a tight smile returning to her lips. "Who's the one that came all the way over here, getting _this close to me_ , _just_ to make a point?"

A sneer appeared on Pansy's face as she released her tight grip on Theo's tie. Hermione straightened her back in the exact moment and smirked at Pansy as she readjusted her tie around her neck.

"Don't even _think_ about speaking to me the rest of the day, Theo Nott." She turned her back on them and marched out of the great hall.

"Getting her to not speak a word to you for the whole day?" Malfoy spoke.

 _Why was he looking in his lap for so long?_ Hermione found herself annoyed with even the minuscule things he did. Like when words came out of his mouth.

He slid down his seat next to Blaise, placing a paperback book on the table.

 _Reading._ She wondered what book, but it was turned over.

"Mate, teach me your ways." Draco looked amused as he made eye contact with Theo.

_You wouldn't be looking so happy-go-lucky if you knew who was really sitting in front of you._

It was strange for Hermione to even think about being nice to Draco. She wasn't sure how to do the whole 'friendly' thing with quite possibly her childhood arch-nemesis and she couldn't very well flirt with him like she did with Pansy.

 _I mean I guess I could. I could even see Theo doing that._ She fought back the gag in her throat at the thought. _Nope. I can't._

"What the fuck was that? When have you ever spoken more than ten words to Pansy?" Blaise inquired, resting on his crossed arms.

"Clearly, a _mistake_ on my part. Bloody annoying." Hermione added.

Draco raised an eyebrow, skeptically and spoke accusingly. "But Granger isn't?" He looked at his friend, Theo, grimacing at the idea.

"To the _rest_ of us, she's quite funny." Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Us?" Draco looked askance at Blaise.

"I haven't personally witnessed her humour, but she seems tolerable enough." Blaise shrugged.

Draco leaned forward, displeasure on his face as he spoke harshly. "Need I remind you both, she's a _fucking_ _mudblood._ " he hissed the last part and sharply stood up, grabbing his book, before storming out of the Great Hall.

"Fucking _wanker_. It's too early for this shite." Blaise unfolded his arm and ran his hands along his face with a deep sigh before interlacing his fingers on the table again.

"The prick has the audacity to lecture us when he's reading a fucking muggle book." Hermione shook her head with disbelief.

_Crime and Punishment._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And the day has just began ;)
> 
> Again, if it's confusing between Theo and Hermione, and who's the one speaking, etc. let me know and I'll try and make it more clear. If this is the case, I will also add add in the beginning AN of the future chapter(s), something like: when I say Hermione in this chapter, I am referring to Hermione in Theo's body, kind of a thing.
> 
> Also, I re-read the previous chapters of this story and wow chapter one and two were super roughhhh. And so were the smut scenes...lol. So I am in the process of rewriting them, just trying to make them sound a bit better and not so juvenile? I'll probably end up fixing up all the current chapters with time, including this one. The main plot points will stay the same so there won't be a reason for you to reread an older chapter unless you want to. If there is any major change, then I will add an AN to whatever next chapter I post.
> 
> My Draco and Hermione all over the place. I feel like they're not quite so consistent? So that is another main reason I want to fix up the other chapters as that's important, especially in the beginning haha. Hermione, I know how I want her to be, but I find myself struggling to really envision her in my head. And Draco, I think I'm just torn between all the different type of Draco's I read in other Dramione fanfictions that my brain is just going all over the place when writing his character, but WE WILL GET THERE, guys. I promise haha.
> 
> Thank you for the reviews and enjoying my story! Currently the Theo/Hermione relationship is saving this fanfiction hahaha.
> 
> Callidora: Sorry, I wasn't sure exactly what you meant. Do you mean it would be cool if she wasn't a virgin? If so, sorry to disappoint, she is still one! Which I'm sure you've realised by now as this chapter cleared that up in the beginning :P
> 
> RoteNacht: Hahaha I'm glad. Thanks for reading!
> 
> I appreciate everyone for answering and I'm really glad you guys like the friendship dynamic between Hermione and Theo! That's been the most fun part to write so far and the most natural as well, so it makes me happy to get all the positive feedback on it! Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, let me know what went through your head when reading :)


	6. Been Thinking About me?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: We made it, guys. Draco and Hermione will finally interact for more than two seconds. Enjoy haha. But this is more of a filler chapter, explanation at the bottom!
> 
> Warnings: language, minor drug use, sexual references
> 
> Disclaimer since I haven't done that for a while: I do not own anything Harry Potter!
> 
> Recap: Theo and Hermione have taken a polyjuice potion to look like one another. Hermione ate breakfast with Theo's Slytherin friends. She looks over Theo's class schedule.

The last person anyone would expect to be sitting in an empty classroom, reading over a textbook, was Theodore Nott. Yet, there he was, doing just that.

As the hour after breakfast came closer to an end, more students shuffled in. Theo, actually Hermione, closed the book and twiddled with the feather quill in her hand. The ancient runes classroom desks were set up in four rows, with two large desks per row that seated two students per desk. Hermione had chosen a seat in the back, which was quite a change for her. Although she was currently polyjuiced to look like Theo Nott, and therefore trying her best to actually _act_ like Theo Nott who _always_ preferred the back of classrooms, she very much intended to sit further back in all of her classes this year. Her interest in academia was as strong as ever, but she had no desire to bring extra attention to herself this time around.

Padma Patil walked in and nodded her head, smiling at Hermione before sitting down in the second row, with a fellow Ravenclaw boy, who Hermione wasn't sure the name of.

 _Are Theo and Padma friends?_ She wondered as she observed Padma. She couldn't recall ever seeing them together, but again, she had never really paid much attention to Theo Nott before the summer.

She heard the chair next to her drag across the floor and her face soured when she turned her head.

_Malfoy._

He slid into the chair, practically on the edge, with his legs stretched out as far as they could reach. Hermione found herself irritated knowing that Malfoy was in their class. Clearly, her prayers for him to fail his O.W.L.s hadn't worked. But she would be lying if she said she wasn't surprised. Hermione sighed in disappointment. If she was lucky, maybe he failed at least some of them or decided to drop a few classes.

"What?" Draco asked.

Hermione turned her head to look at him, pushing her newly straight, dark brown hair out of her face. She saw the muggle book on the table and nodded her chin towards it.

"How far along are you?" She asked.

Draco look up at who he thought was his friend, and followed his dark brown gaze. "The book? It's muggle."

Hermione scoffed. "Clearly." She continued staring at him, almost accusingly.

Draco's brows furrowed when she continued to stare. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Well are you going to answer the question?" Hermione bobbed her head as she spoke and widened her eyes.

Draco leaned forward and widened his eyes as well, mockingly. "I haven't read a word of it, Theo. It's _muggle._ " He smirked and resumed leaning against the wooden chair as his eyes scanned around the room.

"So what were you doing all of breakfast then, Malfoy?"

_He hasn't read a single word? Liar._

Draco turned back to look at his friend. "Thinking, _Nott._ "

"Thinking?" Hermione asked suspiciously. "About what, then?"

Draco gave her a sideways glance, clearly irritated. "Yea. It's something us people with a brain do sometimes. And none of your business. What's your fucking problem, mate?"

"Nothing's my _fucking_ problem. I just don't understand why you would be looking at the pages of a muggle book to _think_." Hermione turned her attention back to the front of the room, rolling her eyes.

_Such a fucking prat._

She and Malfoy spoke more this year than they had ever before. Normally it was only Malfoy going off on his bullying tangents while Hermione mostly ignored him or occasionally threw back an insult. Luckily for Hermione though, his main focus was Harry and Ron. As she was experiencing the latter this year it seems, Hermione was definitely _not_ a fan. He certainly had a talent for pissing people off. Everything he did was just..infuriating. Even breathing.

The logical side of Hermione's brain knew that she probably only felt that way about him because of their strained _relationship._ She wasn't even sure why she was mad, at the particular moment. The whole conversation was actually quite ridiculous. But she wanted so badly for him to admit he had read at least one word of the muggle book.

 _Something to taint your pureblood mind._ The book was a masterpiece. It would certainly impress _anyone._ Not that she wanted to use this book as a way to impress Draco Malfoy with something muggle, but in a way she would feel vindicated almost. Like he would perhaps realise that he was wrong to treat her the way he did all these years. That his views of muggles and muggle-borns was wrong. And maybe, just maybe, others could think in a similar manner. And maybe Voldemort wouldn't have anyone to aid or follow him, and he would fail.

 _It's just Malfoy. One boy. It_ _wouldn't change anything._ Hermione shook her head ever so slightly, pushing the ridiculous notion from her head.

 _Mental note: ask Theo for bonbons or to grab my bonbons from my room._ _Or sneak in and get them yourself._

She plopped the last bonbon into her mouth as a distraction and focused her attention back to the book. Hermione couldn't recall how long ago since she had last read it, but when she first read it, she read it two more times afterwards, making her own notes along the pages, something not uncommon for her to do when she thoroughly enjoyed a book.

There was a short pause before Draco sighed.

"The book allows me to pretend to be busy, so Pansy doesn't talk my ear off with whatever insipid things are going on in her head," he replied, still looking forward as well.

"Well you could at least choose a book you would _actually_ read then." Hermione went to grab the book to look at it, but Draco slid it out of her reach, causing her to scoff.

Draco smirked. "But then I'd be distracted with the book and wouldn't be able to think."

Hermione turned back to Draco, her irritation returning again. "So, what, because it's muggle, it _can't_ distract you?"

"Exactly." He answered as if it was the simplest thing.

"That's idiotic." She gave in and turned to look at him again.

"Excuse me?" He turned as well, his attention fully on Hermione.

"It's a book. If a non-muggle book would distract you, then so could a muggle book. You're just actively choosing to ignore this one, when in reality its a very well-written book."

" _You've_ read this book?" He asked.

Hermione tried to reach for the book again. "Of course."

Draco grabbed the book this time, holding it away from Theo, who he thought was acting strange. "Why?" He eyed him suspiciously.

"It's a well-written book." Hermione was the one to answer curtly this time, leaning back in her seat and looking at him from the side.

_Now look who suddenly has all the fucking questions._

"And how did you come to that conclusion, therefore deciding to read it?"

"I just did. How did _you_ come across that book?" Hermione cleared her throat, once again aware of her large Adam's apple.

 _Does Theo even read?_ ... _Of course he does, Hermione. Don't be daft._

"I've noticed that Pansy leaves me alone for the most part when I'm reading," he replied nonchalantly with the brush of his hand, before looking his friend in the eyes, as if searching for something, before he next spoke. "So I nicked it from Granger when she forgot it on a table, what, two years ago?" he cleared his throat and looked away for a brief second before his eyes returned.

" _Excuse me?_ You stole it? From..Granger?" Hermione felt a flash of anger and was unable to conceal it before Draco noticed.

"What of it? Does that bother you, Theo?" He spoke almost tauntingly and was still looking very intently into Theo's eyes, as if making an assessment.

Hermione knew it was ridiculous, but she felt as if he could see that it was her he was speaking to. So, she looked away from his locked gaze. "I-I don't know. It's muggle and from a..mudblood. Are you not disgusted just touching it?"

"Obviously not."

Silence.

"Why are you keeping Pansy around, if you don't even like her, then?" Hermione was unable to hide the displeasure in her voice.

She could honestly say, Draco and Pansy were two of her least favorite people at Hogwarts. Yet after hearing Malfoy talk about their _relationship_ , she wasn't sure why he wasted any time on her. Surely he could find another witch that he at least enjoyed having around him. As baffling as it was to Hermione, she knew several other girls who would gladly take Pansy's spot.

A small, breathless laugh left Draco's mouth. "You're seriously judging who I keep as company? While you're here doting after a mudblood, enough to read her stupid muggle books?"

 _Fucking ridiculous._ Hermione breathed out through her nose in an attempt to diffuse her anger. _You're Theo, right now._

"I actually enjoy _Granger's_ company. _And_ her muggle books. I'm judging your company because you say you despise Pansy, yet she's constantly all over you and you two are always together."

"Fucking ridiculous." he mumbled under his breath. "Yea, because she won't leave me alone." He replied, ignoring the comment about Hermione.

"So make her?"

"Obviously it's not that simple."

"What do you mean _obviously._ Why not?"

"Because, Theo."

"Because what?"

"It's seriously not obvious?"

"Clearly not, if I'm _still_ asking."

"She's an easy fuck. Merlin-"

"I've thought about it and..sorry, Theo. I have to decline your request. I will _not_ be having a threesome with you and Draco."

Both Hermione and Draco turned their heads immediately, looking at the face of none other than Hermione Granger. They both looked incredulously at her. Theo pulled out the chair next to Hermione and smiled down at both of them.

"Now, I say no to the threesome, naturally. But if it's just-"

Hermione cut Theo off, knowing very well that he would make a joke about her and Malfoy, as he had done _many_ times over the summer. "Yes, what a shame. Please sit, _Granger._ " She stared at her own face with wide eyes and harshly nodded her head towards the chair.

Theo smirked at Hermione, "Gladly, Nott." and sat down.

Malfoy leaned in to whisper, "Seriously, what the fuck, Theo."

She gave Draco a tight lipped smile as she leaned herself, towards Theo and his long bushy hair, whispering, "Fuck you." before returning back to Draco.

If she acted as if she had no idea why herself, Hermione Granger, had said that, then it would make herself look _completely_ mad.

"Uh, yea. I might've lost a bet with someone. And as I failed, I had to ask Granger if she would have a threesome with you and I. Don't ask me why or any details. The one who I lost to was very weird about it." she whispered back.

_I'm going to kill Theo._

"Have you gone mad?" Hermione leaned back in closer to Theo.

"Gasp!"

"No one says the word 'gasp' Th- _Hermione_. It's a sound." She cast a glance at Draco who she was glad didn't seem to be paying attention to them.

He smirked. "Brightest witch and all that, and you've only just realised how mad I am? Tsk tsk. I'll have to alert the daily prophet on this matter." he shook his head side to side, swaying his long curls in the process.

Hermione rolled her eyes.

"There isn't any rule against it, Theo." He held up a finger in Hermione's face and she lightly smacked it away.

"Godrick." She ran her hands through her hair, unused to the feel of being able to run her hands completely through it, instead of her usually resting there, hands stuck in her curls.

"You're in a sour mood all the sudden. What's happened?" He placed a hand on Hermione's broad shoulder.

"Had a small dose of poison that is reality." She smiled sheepishly at her friend.

Theo smiled back and rubbed her back, understanding. Voldemort.

"Want a bonbon?"

"Please. I've eaten the last in yo- _my_ robes but they're hardly effective anymore."

Theo dug out a bonbon and offered it to Hermione, to which she gladly accepted, plopping it immediately into her mouth.

"So, _Granger_. Finally decided to catch yourself a pureblood this year?" Draco was watching their interactions with a sneer.

Hermione opened her mouth to speak, but Theo beat her to it.

"Shove off, Dr-"

Hermione nudged him in his side. She never called Draco by his first name.

"-Malfoy. Nobody has time for your shite right now, yea?"

Draco chuckled with a venomous look in his eyes. "You're still addressing me as if I'm somehow you're equal, mudblood. Do I need to remind you who _I_ am, and what _you_ are?"

Theo looked at Draco incredulously before meeting Hermione's gaze, simply blinking. Almost to say, did he _really_ just say that?

Hermione found herself curious to see how Theo would handle the situation, so she simply let him. He cleared his throat, a soft sound rather than the harsh one that he usually made. He gave Draco a small smile and leaned on the desk, as he kept his head turned towards him.

Theo swept the long hair behind him. "And pray tell me _how_ exactly you plan to _remind_ me, Malfoy? Going to bend me over a table and teach me a lesson, then?"

Hermione's eyes widened. Draco leaned right across her, roughly brushing her chest, causing her to sit back.

"I'd rather chop my own dick off," He replied with a sneer.

Theo leaned in, much more calm than Draco, and placed a hand on his arm, grasping it firmly and pulling him even closer towards her. "I imagine cutting off one's own dick can be quite the task. I'll gladly offer my services."

Draco looked over Hermione's face with disgust, completely unaware that it was actually Theo, before ripping his arm from his small hand. "The thought of you touching me in _any_ way, makes me sick."

"Been thinking about me touching you, Malfoy? Hm. Interesting. I bet that's what really makes you sick, isn't it. You don't want me anywhere near your dick, because you probably get hard just at the thought alone. And oh, we can't have that, can we? A pureblood sexually attracted to a mudblood?" He turned to look at his own face, smirking at Hermione at his next choice of words. "Gasp."

Breathless laughter tumbled out of Hermione's mouth.

"Try not to think of me too much the next time you have a quickie with Pansy in a broom cupboard, yea?" Theo added.

"You're fucking disgusting, Granger." Draco spat out.

"All I've heard is a compliment." Theo leaned into one shoulder and blew a kiss towards him. "Careful. My kiss might infect you." He winked.

Draco scoffed and looked up and down Hermione's figure with a look in his eyes that made it seem like he was talking to a mental patient. There was a short pause before he replied. "If I wouldn't know any better, I think you're the one that's spending time thinking, no fantasising, about me, Granger."

"Of course I am. I've been watching your chiseled body during quidditch all of last year and I couldn't help but find myself wondering for the longest time, does the carpet match the drapes? If you know what I mean. But Theo over here," he clasped Hermione's shoulder, keeping his eyes on Draco still, "has already confirmed it for me. Pale blonde. Must just drive Pansy wild."

Draco's mouth opened ever so slightly, in shock. Before he could respond, their teacher walked in, conversing alongside Blaise Zabini. Hermione wasn't sure if Draco would have even been able to formulate a response. Theo had left even her speechless, so she couldn't imagine how Malfoy felt, being the recipient of his remarks. And all of it coming out of the mouth of Hermione Granger, no less. That must've made it that much more shocking for Malfoy.

"Sorry everyone, it appears my watch was five minutes off. Thank you, Mr. Zabini, you may take a seat."

Blaise observed the classroom and immediately noticed Theo Nott, before quickly glancing over who was sitting next to him, which happened to be th _e real_ Theo Nott. He smirked at seeing Theo and Hermione together before taking the seat next to Draco, the last in their row.

Hermione leaned in to Theo. "You and the constant comments about Malfoy and I." she whispered very quietly, half amused.

"You have no one but yourself to blame, Herm." He whispered back and chuckled. "I should come up with a name for you both, like muggles do with celebrities."

"I can't fucking wait."

"You are all aware of how advanced courses will consist on difficult, real wizarding world tasks. And I'm aware that every one of you is very much prepared for your O.W.L.s., so these classes are given specifically to prepare you for your future careers. Next year, you won't have such an opportunity as only your O.W.L. preparatory courses will be available. So use this time wisely." Professor Babbling continued.

"If anything, that entire conversation makes me believe that there's truth to your joke, Herm."

Hermione quickly turned her head away from the professor. "What? Are you being serious right now?"

"Deadly." Theo nodded his head, but kept his eyes towards the front of the room.

"There has never been anything between us, Theo." Hermione whispered quietly enough so no one else could hear them.

"That I believe. But," he threw Hermione a quick cheeky look before once again watching the professor, feigning attention. "The sexual tension. It was oozing off of him. Merlin's balls. He wants you. He even made me, want you to want him."

Hermione smirked. "I think for once I agree with Malfoy, in that you're _fucking_ disgusting. And you do realise I was right here, witnessing everything? I have to disagree."

"You may have a penis for today, my young grasshopper, but you have yet to _truly_ understand the sexual inner workings of a man. Especially those of the fucked up Slytherin variety. I'm sure Potter's got his own issues to match, but the rest of those Gryffindor boys, as black and white as they come. You don't have an eye for these things. Yet."

"Oh, Slytherin men, is it?" Hermione chuckled.

"Nothing matures a boy faster than fucked up pureblood tradition, I always say." Theo winked.

"I think I'll just gladly focus on the fact that you and I both agree you're mad, therefore everything you say, is nonsense." She turned her focus back to Professor Babbling.

"Mr. Zabini has spoken with me about the third project on the syllabus I've released for this term. And as he was the only one to do so, I've decided we can begin there, as he has requested. So, pull out your copy of Spellman's Syllabary. We will go over a few key things in there, and our first assignment will be creating rune charts of simpler spells. It may be child's work to you all, but it will be time consuming and must be _exactly_ precise..."

"Everyone said the same thing about Einstein." Theo added.

"I'm trying to pay attention, _Herm."_ Hermione ignored Theo's comment.

"This is the foundation of magic. And one mistake on a _single_ rune could make the whole spell fail or could very well be the difference between a simple levitating charm to a deadly curse. After this week, we will then begin looking at already translated runes with a special guest who has received his ThM in Ancient Ruins. For those unfamiliar with the term, that is an abbreviation for Thaumaturge of Magic. It is equivalent to the muggle PhD, I believe."

"How do you even know who Einstein is?"

"Muggle studies. Did you know, he has a PhD, which is the equivalent to the wizarding ThM?" Theo looked at Hermione sarcastically, baffled, causing her to snort.

"Wow... _gasp!_ " Hermione lifted her shoulders and shook her head in amusement.

"That's the spirit, _Theodore._ " He nudged her playfully with his arm before they focused again on the lesson, which was spent going over certain passages from Spellman's book, before given their assignments. As soon as class was dismissed, Draco was the first to leave.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: Ok so, this is more of a filler chapter! I really want to get to dinner at the great hall, but I've decided, I need to reread the Half-Blood Prince because it's been too long. I decided to reread the books a bit ago, read one, watch the movie, and I'm currently on the fourth book. So, I'm going to speed through them like I do through some of these Dramione fanfictions, so I can update the next chapter by next week haha and get this story rolling with the main plot. Hopefully this little encounter with Theo, Draco, and Hermione is enough to satisfy you guys for the moment! I know you're excited to see interactions with Harry and Ron, seeing Hermione and Theo, and I really wanted to add that, but I don't want to add them in till their fresh in my mind from the original book!
> 
> Thanks for those who are still here and reading :')
> 
> Callidora: Yes, haha it is a cliche, but I'm glad you feel that way, and about Blaise as well!


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